


Three Times The Love

by B_Rabbit14



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog (Video Games), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: AU, Baby bois, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Heavy Angst, Light Angst, Multi, SSS brothers, Silver and Sonic are made on the Ark too, depends on what chapter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-11
Updated: 2020-07-15
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:48:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 13
Words: 23,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24125407
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/B_Rabbit14/pseuds/B_Rabbit14
Summary: Gerald wasn't convinced that Project Shadow was going to be enough to bring forth the cure for his granddaughter. So he instead of bargaining with the Black Arms again he took matters into his own hands and used what resources he had on hand.Or instead of only Shadow being made on the Ark why not throw in our other favorite hedgehogs. Maria has three baby brothers and will do anything to protect them.After the fall of the Ark Sonic is determined to find his brothers once more and keep them away from the Eggman's clutches.Otherwise called Project Triple S
Relationships: Gerald Robotnik & Maria Robotnik, Gerald Robotnik & Shadow the Hedgehog, Gerald Robotnik & Silver the Hedgehog, Gerald Robotnik & Sonic the Hedgehog, Maria Robotnik & Shadow the Hedgehog, Maria Robotnik & Silver the Hedgehog, Maria Robotnik & Sonic the Hedgehog, Miles "Tails" Prower & Sonic the Hedgehog, Shadow the Hedgehog & Silver the Hedgehog, Shadow the Hedgehog & Silver the Hedgehog & Sonic the Hedgehog, Shadow the Hedgehog & Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog & Silver the Hedgehog
Comments: 122
Kudos: 202





	1. First Encounters

**Author's Note:**

> Hello this idea came during the ungodly hours of the night and I spent the last two days making this chapter on the limited time I have so please pardon the many mistakes that will most definitely be in here. Either way I hope you enjoy.

Maria sped down the hall with a large grin on her face, she had snuck into her grandfather's lab earlier and found out something incredible. Her grandfather seemed to be making artificial creatures right here on the Ark! She had managed to find out where each of them was being held before one of her grandfather's assistance walked in and she had to sneak out before she got caught. She had run off to the closest one eager to find out just what her grandfather was up to, he hadn't had much time to spend with her but she understood that he was a busy man and hade lots of work to do. Maria would be lying if she said she didn't get lonely being one of the only children on the ark, so even if her new friends could be highly dangerous experiments she wouldn't mind. After all, company was company.

Maria peeked around the corner letting her blue eyes scan for anyone who might send her back to her room, she ducked back behind the wall when she heard a door slid open. Once she felt brave enough the young blond peered around the corner again she saw her grandfather exit a room holding a clipboard and muttering something under his breath.

_ That must be it! _

Maria's grin grew as she waited for her grandfather to leave, once he rounded another corner and was gone from her sight she sprinted forward and stood in front of the door. It opened automatically which she was thankful for considering she hadn't thought of the possibility of there being a password. Maria's wide smile faded into an expression of awe mixed with curiosity as she stepped into the lab, she had seen several of her grandfather's labs but this seemed to have lots more technology than she was expecting. A large computer was direct to her right as she stepped through the door along with several other monitors that each were recording and relaying information dealing with what she guessed was the creature her grandfather was working on. Maria gasped lightly at the sight of a large cylinder-shaped tank that stood at the back of the room, a large grey tarp was covering it but some light seemed to leak from the bottom of the tank where the tarp failed to cover all of it.

Curiosity piqued, Maria wandered over to the large tank with wide eyes. Raising her hand she grabbed onto the tarp and gave it a light tug. When it didn't move her eyes narrowed in slight annoyance, Maria grabbed the tarp with both hands and gave it another tug. She kept pulling until whatever was holding the tarp in place gave way and sent her tumbling backward as a startled yelp left her lips. She ended up falling onto her rear end and groaned slightly before looking back to the tank.

Another gasp left the young girl as her eyes landed on what was inside the tank. The figure was slightly distorted as the liquid the creature was being held rippled but once it settled again Maria could see that it was surprisingly small. She didn't know what she had been expecting but she certainly wasn't expecting some kind of animal creature, not that she was complaining or judging she was just a little surprised. The creature was black with red stripes along with its limbs and what she assumed to be its quills.

"Quills, huh?" She muttered laying hand on the glass container. "So a porcupine- no those are pretty ugly. You must be a hedgehog then." She said with a wide smile laying her other hand onto the glass and pressing her face to the tank making it squish her nose. "Are you a boy or a girl?" She asked the creature as if it could hear her even though she doubted it could. Maria pulled away from the glass and looked to the closest monitor. In bold red lettering, it read Project Shadow. Maria tilted her head slightly confused and decided to read a little more, she scrolled down and found some basic information on her new companion. After scrolling through and skimming over the boring parts she found out that it was, in fact, a male. She looked back to the sleeping experiment and noticed for the first time the several wires that snaked around its body and were attached to his head and back as well as his chest.

"Are you sick like me?" She asked with a small frown. That would be unfortunate, but what kind of illness required being kept submerged in strange liquid and locked in a tank? Maria was brought out of her thoughts when she heard the door slide open, whirling around with wide eyes Maria was greeted by the sight of her grandfather.

"I must have left it in here- Maria?" He asked suddenly noticing she was there. Maria waved and smiled sheepishly, her grandfather, Gerald chuckled and walked towards her. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be resting?" He asked placing a hand on her shoulder. Maria let out a sigh of relief glad that she wasn't angry with her.

"But I don't need to rest, I feel a lot better than I did yesterday and I didn't want to waste a perfectly good day in my bed doing nothing," The young girl huffed crossing her arms over her chest. The elder man smiled fondly and shook his head.

"I'm glad you feel better but you can never be too careful. Promise you haven't been over-exerting yourself," He ruffled her hair affectionately. She groaned and shoved his hand away lightly with a smile on her face.

"I promise," She giggled holding onto his hand. "Who is this?" Maria asked tugging his hand and pointing at the tank. Gerald sighed but the fond smile was still present showing that he wasn't upset with her in any way.

"It seems you've found my latest project, I was hoping to surprise you but that seems to have failed," He chuckled before turning his attention to the panel next to the tank and pressing several buttons before a chart overtook the screen.

"What's that?" Maria asked peeking over his shoulder from where he was hunched over the panel.

"I already checked his vitals earlier but it wouldn't hurt to do it again, this chart gives me a summary of how our little friend is doing." He answered turning to face the tank again. Maria followed his example and looked back to the tank as well she placed her hands against the glass once more and looked up at the creature that was still peacefully sleeping unaware of her blue eyes watching over him with fascination and newfound excitement.

"What's his name?" She asked not taking her eyes off of the creature's sleeping form.

"Well... He's known as Project Shadow, but he doesn't have much of a name yet."

" Shadow... That sounds like a nice name. When will he wake up, Grandfather?" Maria asked bouncing in place.

"I see you've already decided his name. He and the others should be waking up soon actually," Gerald answered smiling at his granddaughter's enthusiasm. Maria's bouncing stopped as she took in her grandfather's words she looked to him with wide shining eyes.

"There's more?! I figured but I thought those were just failed attempts... But that's not the point!" She shouted causing the elderly man to laugh at her behavior. "Can I see them, can I see them?! Please!" Maria pleaded and jutted her bottom lip out with wide eyes. Her hands were clasped together and she stared at her grandfather. He rubbed the back on his bald head nervously knowing he didn't have the heart to tell her no.

"Alright, I suppose it would hurt," He sighed with a small smile playing on his lips. Maria cheered and pumped a fist into the air before grabbing her grandfather's hand and pulling him out of the lab, the young girl whirled back to face him.

"Which way?" She asked still grasping his hand.

"Follow me," He chuckled and began to lead her to his other private labs.

After many twists and turns that Maria was sure she wouldn't remember they finally stopped in front of another door. It required a handprint signature though and didn't open automatically like the previous one. Gerald placed his hand on the pad and it gave an affirmative beep before the door slid opened with a slight whoosh. The two made their way into the lab and Maria looked around before her wide, blue eyes found what she was looking for. Similar to the lab Shadow was present in, in the back of it was not one but two tanks full of the same clear liquid. Maria raced over to them and pressed her face up to the one of the left that held a white blob. Maria waited while holding her breath for the water to settle.

Once it did Maria let out a soft squeal of delight and turned to her grandfather with a wide smile. He chuckled and shook his head while she turned her attention back to the tank. Inside was another hedgehog but this one was a whitish color like and his quills were a bit different. On the top of his forehead was five quills that drifted upward in the fluid he rested in, behind his head were two large quills falling downward. On his chest was white fluff like Shadow had but only this one had a lot more, Maria could almost guarantee that once it was awake and dry it would be very soft. Maria's attention was soon attracted by the strange glowing symbols on both of his hands, the glow shined a bright cyan blue that was beautiful in Maria's opinion. She looked back to her grandfather with stars in her eyes.

"Grandfather, it's so cute!" She squealed quietly. Gerald's soft smile grew as he saw how happy this had managed to make Maria.

"He." He said suddenly, causing Maria brows to furrow in confusion before her eyes widened and her mouth formed a small 'o' while she nodded in understanding.

"Well,  _ he _ is so cute." She corrected herself with a giggle. "What about this one? Is it a male too?" She questioned moving to the other tank holding a blue creature.

"Yes,"

Maria nodded and observed the other hedgehog in question. Unlike his brothers, he did not have and chest fur saves for a small peach-colored patch the framed his stomach and chest. His quills did not point upwards like Shadow's but downwards and were a cobalt blue. Maria frowned at the odd color but thought it was neat as it was her favorite either way.

"Sonic." Maria suddenly said then looked to the other tank and pointed in its direction. "Silver." She turned to her guardian with a wide smile. "That way their names match like triplets!" She looked back to the tanks and waved to each one. "Hi, Silver, hi, Sonic. It's nice to meet you, I hope you wake up soon so we can talk to each other properly," Gerald felt pride watching how easily his granddaughter was taken to this, as they could be the key to her cure. The old man watched at his young twelve-year-old granddaughter continued to talk to Silver and Sonic telling them about all the fun things they could do once they and Shadow woke up and left their tanks.

"Grandfather?" Maria called suddenly causing Gerald to be pulled from his musings. He noticed Maria had now faced him with a questioning expression.

"Yes, Maria?"

"Why isn't Shadow in here with them? Why can't his tank be put in here too? He must be lonely." Maria said with a small frown.

"Well, you see dear, Shadow is different from them. He was made first and Silver and Sonic were made from his DNA, I had made them afterward and didn't think to put them in the same room." As he answered he noticed Maria's frown grow. "But that doesn't mean they will stay separated!" He hurried to say. "After they wake up, they are free to be together. Shadow will in no way be kept from his brothers." He reassured her. Maria stared at him for a moment before nodding and covering her mouth as she yawned suddenly. "I see someone is getting tired," Gerald stated causing Maria to scowl a little.

"I'm not tired," She denied but was cut off from another yawn.

Gerald chuckled and placed a hand on Maria's back, guiding her out of the lab. Before they left, though he stopped at the door and took Maria's hand before placing it on the panel by the door. Maria looked up at her grandfather confused. "So you can come to visit them," He explained and smiled when Maria's face lit up before she yawned yet again.

* * *

Maria skipped down the hallway carrying several of her books securely in her arms. She had just finished visiting Shadow for the day and was about to visit Sonic and Silver now. For the past week, she had built up a daily routine of visiting the hedgehog brothers after she had finished with her school work of course. She placed her hand on the pad and the door opened with ease, Maria then walked in as her smile grew.

"Hi, Sonic! Hi, Silver!" She greeted cheerfully. The blond sat pulled over a pillow she had brought in a couple of days ago and took a seat on it before opening up the first book on her stack. "Okay, so I decided since I told you guys almost everything I can think of I should read a few books to you." She looked down the page knowing better than waiting for a response and began to read. After going through at least three books Maria's stomach growled, she giggled and closed the book before looking to the tanks in front of her. "I think that's enough for today, I'm getting a bit hungry so I'm going to go eat dinner but I will be back tomorrow." She shoved her pillow into a corner and collected her books before exiting the room letting the door shut behind her.

The door opened again and Maria peeked in once more, "Goodnight you two! Hopefully, you'll wake up tomorrow." The door closed again.

* * *

"-then it blew up in his face," Maria laughed softly. "His mustache was sticking straight up like Silver's quills!" Silence overtook the lab once more and Maria's smile faded. It had been two weeks since she had found out about Shadow, Silver, and Sonic. The young girl was beginning to lose hope that they would ever wake up, but she still made enough time to come to the labs and tell each of them about her day or read to them if nothing interesting happened. Maria stared at Shadow's sleeping face for a moment before closing her eyes and sighing deeply, she moved to stand but froze when she heard a small tap. Maria whirled around searching for the source of the noise but saw nothing she looked over the many wires connecting with Shadow's body. She was about to turn away assuming she had only imagined it but stopped when the noticed the slightest twitch move up his arm sending one of the wires connected to it forward and cause it to tap on the glass. 

Maria gasped and placed her hands against the glass before pressing her forehead against it as well watching for any more movement. His eyelids fluttered once causing her to gasped again before biting down on her lip to quiet herself. The flutter once more before slowly opening to reveal ruby red irises that glanced around sleepily before staring into Maria's own blue eyes. Maria was sure she was smiling so hard her cheeks would hurt a lot later but right now she couldn't bring herself to care.

"You're awake..." She gasped out. "Oh, Chaos, you're awake. Ha!" She laughed running a hand through her hair. She looked to Shadow and her smile softened as she lowered her voice as to not startle him further. "H-hi Shadow..." Maria said softly trying to hold in her excitement. Shadow stared at her, his red eyes boring into Maria's but she did not sense any hostility from only confusion as he began to move around slowly. Shadow tore his gaze away from Maria and looked down at his body, his brow furrowed in confusion, and something akin to fear lit up in his eyes at the sight of the wires connected to him. He looked around and placed his hands against the glass his eyes widening slightly once they hit it.

"Hey, hey. It's okay, you're safe," Maria moved her hands and placed them above Shadow's his eyes followed her movements warily but he didn't move his hands and instead moved closer to the glass separating them. Maria leaned her forehead against the glass and smiled when Shadow curiously did the same. "Grandfather will come and get you out of there, okay?" Shadow seemed to understand because he nodded. Maria moved away from the tank and felt her heart shatter at the fearful expression that flashed across Shadow's face when she did, she walked to the pad by the door and pressed the call button for her Grandfather's communication device.

"Yes? What's wrong I am bit bust at the moment-"

"Grandfather," Maria cut him off and sent Shadow and small glance.

"Maria? What is it? Is something wrong? Are you hurt-"

"No, no, not at all. I'm fine," Maria laughed at her Grandfather's worry and tried not to scream out her next words. "Shadow's awake, but he seems a bit frightened. Are you going to let him out? I think he'd feel much better," Maria said as calmly as possible.

"He's awake?! Oh, yes, uh-I'm on my way right now. I will be there shortly, just make sure he doesn't begin to flip out or anything," He said before quickly hanging up. Maria giggled before looking back to Shadow who had now managed to appear calm despite his earlier fear. Maria walked over to the tank again and stood before Shadow he watched her with curiosity shining in his eyes and she couldn't help but smile.

Soon enough the door opened and in walked Gerald Robotnik, his appearance seemed to be slightly frazzled but Maria chalked it up to him rushing down here. Maria turned to her Grandfather who walked forward and began to fiddle with the panel next to the closest monitor before pressing a few buttons on the panel attached to the tank holding Shadow. Maria bounced in anticipation as the liquid Shadow was being held in began to slowly drain, Shadow was glancing around with wide eyes as Gerald kept moving back and forth making sure all of Shadow's vitals and that his extraction was running smoothly. The last the old scientist wanted being for things to go south right before he crossed the finish line. Maria, having noticed Shadow's growing distressed moved forward and placed her hand on the glass again Shadow eyes her hand before following her example and placing his onto hers again.

The liquid drained completely forcing Shadow to stand on his own which didn't work out very well as his knees buckled and his legs gave out after two seconds. Maria cried out worriedly and was shouting for her Grandfather to hurry and open the tank. Once he did so Maria rushed forward but stopped when she noticed Shadow tensed slightly. Maria crouched down before standing completely on her knees as she recalled reading somewhere that making yourself appear small helps animals become more at ease with your presence. Though she had to remind herself that Shadow wasn't just some animal he was a sentient person with thoughts and feelings of his own.

"It's okay Shadow," She said raising her hands in a placating gesture. "We're aren't going to hurt you, I promise." She held her hand out for him to take and he stared at it for a moment as if contemplating whether it was safe or not. "My name's Maria, and the man who created you in my grandfather Gerald Robotnik," She introduced herself hoping that it would make things less awkward, Shadow stared at her for a moment before turning his gaze over to the other human present. Gerald had been writing down notes while watching the two interact but stopped once he noticed the hedgehog was staring at him. Shadow ruby red eyes seemed to be full of distrust but once Maria's words registered to him his gaze softened right before Gerald's eyes. Shadow took Maria's hand and the young girl helped him stand on shaky legs. Gerald watched in awe as the project many saw to be a lethal weapon stood on shaky legs like a newborn calf and looked up at Maria with childlike wonder.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hewwo....
> 
> It is currently 4:23 in the morning and I'm dying. I can't anything fun to say other than I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of this. I will be working on the next chapter but do not expect anything because I have limited time to post things as of now and don't think if I'll make it in time. So please don't kill me if I have to update three months or so from now.
> 
> If you liked it don't hesitate to leave a comment or kudos, feedback is appreciated.
> 
> Thanks and good night/morning/afternoon to you all! Please stay safe and healthy.


	2. New Faces

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again and welcome to the new chapter of Three Times The Love!
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Shadow walk alongside Maria while the girl held onto his hand, she had been showing him around the Ark with such excitement ever since he had gotten the green light from the Doctor that he could move around. Before they had left the lab Gerald gave Shadow some shoes to wear, they were quite large and clunky but he was going to complain as he didn't think he had the right to refuse a gift from his creator. He now adorned white gloves with red and black cuffs as well as gold rings that were secured around his wrists, when he asked what they were for Gerald startled a bit at his voice as that was his first sentence. He explained that his power was unstable and that the rings-called them inhibitors- would help him contain and control his power, he was about to ask more about this 'power' Maria was quick to ask if Shadow was fit to walk around now. After learning how to walk around the lab and stumbling much to his embarrassment they had made it out of the lab.

"How are you holding up, Shadow?" Maria asked glancing at him before looking forward once more.

"What do you mean?" Maria had been startled by his deep voice but was happy he could speak nonetheless. Maria stopped and turned to face him fully causing Shadow to stare up at her confused by her sudden change in mood, Maria squeal internally when she realized he only came up to her chest.

"Well, I know that this must be a lot to take in considering you were technically born only a few hours ago. You're in a new place with new people and I know that can be scary, so I want to know if you're alright." She finished and Shadow blinks slowly before looking away as if ashamed of something. "It's alright if you are afraid, I won't tell anyone." Maria supplied kindly. Shadow nodded and looked up at her again.

"It's a little overwhelming, I guess." He muttered and averted his gaze while a light blush dusted his muzzle. "But I'll be fine, I have to get used to it sometime." He hurried to say making Maria giggle at his attitude.

"I'm sure it must be, but you've been handling it well for the most part," She reassured and grabbed his hand once more before resuming in their walk. "I hope you don't mind if I show you something else, I think you'll like this." Shadow's raised a brow but didn't question it further as he could sense Maria wanted this to be a surprise. They winded through the hallways in silence for the most part with Maria pointing out something now and then. Maria suddenly stopped in front of another door and placed her hand on a panel that scanned her hand before opening for them. Maria wordlessly lead Shadow into the lab and Shadow's eyes widened when his eyes landed on the tanks in the back of the room and he noticed bright green eyes staring back at him from within one of them. Shadow stared at the creature within and it stared back but tilted its head the side curiously.

"What is that?" Shadow asked pointing to the tank. Maria followed his finger and her eyes widened as well.

"Sonic! You're awake!" Maria exclaimed happily making a beeline to the tank with Shadow not far behind. "Shadow woke up not that long ago as well, isn't that exciting?" The creature-Sonic turned his emerald gaze to the young blond and his eyes seemed to lit up at the sight of her. Maria noticed and smiled brightly, "You recognize me?" 

Sonic nodded eagerly and pressed his hands against the glass separating him from the outside but didn't seem confused or scared of it all as Shadow had been.

"Could you hear me while you were asleep?" Another nod along with a smile that stretched wide. "Did you like to hear my stories?" Sonic nodded again before his gaze shifted to Shadow again and he pointed curiously at him and looked to Maria as if asking who he was. "Oh! This is your brother, Shadow, I've told you about him before." Shadow blanched at the word 'brother' and looked to Maria for an explanation but she was busy fiddling with another panel most likely trying to call down her grandfather so he could help get Sonic out of his tank. Sonic had his face pressed against the glass and was staring at Shadow with a curious glint in his shining green eyes. Shadow met his gaze with a curious expression of his own though it was masked under an annoyed expression. Sonic glanced down at his body and noticed the wires attached to him for the first time, the blue hedgehog frowned and tugged and one but winced in pain and let it fall back into place. Shadow watched him look around again before looking to his left and pressing himself flush against the glass as he tried to get a look at the other tank. 

Shadow realized he hadn't noticed the other tank as Sonic had taken up most of his attention, he turned to look at it as well taking in the sight of the other hedgehog within that he assumed was also their brother. Sonic was tapping the glass seemingly trying to get the sleeping hedgehog's attention and to Shadow's surprise the other began to slowly wake up, Sonic's smile grew as did the volume of his tapping when the other's golden eyes fully opened. At first, he did nothing but stare but as he began to take in the sights around him opened his mouth a let out a squeak that was garbled by the liquid he rested in. Sonic's eyes widened at the other's reaction before turning to Shadow for help, Shadow looked back at him and then the other before sighing and moving forward catching the white hedgehog off guard.

The other shied away from the glass staring at Shadow with wide frightened eyes while Sonic watched on with worry. Shadow slowly raised his hand and placed it against the glass and looked at the other expectantly, his patience was rewarded when the albino raised his hand slowly and placed it against his. Shadow noticed Sonic watching them with something akin to a longing in his bright green eyes, the ebony hedgehog's gaze softened and he raised his other hand allowing it to come in contact with the glass of Sonic's tank. Sonic's eyes widened slightly and he looked to Shadow as if unsure he was okay with this before hesitantly bringing his hand to the same spot and smiling brightly when Shadow didn't pull away. The albino of the three looked to Sonic curiously who in turn waved and smiled kindly.

Gerald walked in the lab just as Maria turned off the communicator and was shocked to see Shadow interacting easily with his brothers despite the glass wall separated them from him. Maria turned and saw that Silver had awoken as well she opened her mouth to say something but Gerald placed a hand on her shoulder catching her attention, she looked to her guardian in confusion as he brought a finger to his mouth to signal for her to be quiet. The blond tilted her head before looking back and saw how Shadow was taken to the other two mobians and was gazing at them with such wonder but the two humans could sense the protective aura surrounding him as he continued to silently interact with his brethren.

* * *

"Alright, Silver seems to be fully functional and able to leave his stabilizer but I'm not too sure about Sonic," Gerald stated while looking through their data.

"What's wrong with him?" Shadow and Maria asked at the same time while Silver looked on silently asking the question as well.

"Nothing major just his legs don't seem to be fully developed yet and I fear that even though he's awake now letting him out will stop their development." He explained turning to the blue hedgehog who was frowning and looking down at his legs, he brought one of his hands down and began to lightly poke it. He brought his gaze back up to the Doctor and shrugged helplessly.

"Will he get better?" Maria asked softly looking at her grandfather while placing a hand on the tank. 

"Yes, it's nothing to worry about. Trust me just a few days in the tank and soon he'll be running around in no time," He tried to reassure the other three. His gaze turned to Silver and the albino hedgehog smiled shyly in return. "How about we let Silver out now, I'm sure you're excited to properly meet everyone." Silver nodded eagerly while Gerald worked to begin the draining sequence of the tank. Maria and Shadow watched with expectant eyes as the liquid slowly drained dropping Silver gently onto the floor of the tank, his weak and inexperienced legs quickly gave out on him as Shadow's had done. Silver began to cough harshly before vomiting the liquid still in his system the glass slid to the side allowing Gerald to come forward and place a hand on Silver's back while rubbing circles while he waited for the mobian to finish coughing.

Silver gagged loudly before resorting to breathing heavily and he shakily wiped away spit from his chin. He rose his head and smiled shakily at the older male. "T-thank you..." His soft voice whispered.

"No problem, now I need to run some tests to confirm you're in tip-top shape before Maria tries to drag you away," He said and lifted the small hedgehog in his arms making Silver squeak in surprise.

Maria giggled and followed her grandfather to help him with Silver while Shadow opted to stay put and look at Sonic while the other watched Silver get checked up. Sonic wasn't frowning but Sonic could see he was disappointed that he could join them as well. Shadow huffed before moving to sit in front of the tank causing Sonic to turn his attention away from Silver to look down at Shadow confused. Sonic blink quietly before trying to sit a well but the liquid caused him to float a few inches off of the tanks' floor.

"Maria and Silver want you to come out already so tell those legs of yours to hurry up and form," He scoffed with a playful smirk to which Sonic returned with one of his own and an eager nod of his head.

* * *

Sonic floated aimlessly in his tank with nothing to do but stare at the wall to pass the time, he couldn't move much without getting tangled in the wires still connected to him but he had managed to float upside down. The blue hedgehog felt he would go mad if he had to stay in there for another moment longer. He heard the soft hiss as the door opened, his green eyes lit up before narrowing when he realized whoever had entered was not anyone he had seen before. It was a young man looking to be in his mid-twenties he wore a standard lab coat and had black hair that was neatly cut and gelled back on his nose were large-framed glasses and in his hand was a clipboard. The newcomer seemed to finally notice Sonic's staring as he gasped and backed up in shock before seeming to gather his courage and taking a few steps closer.

Sonic growled lowly but it was garbled by the liquid he was being kept in, the man didn't seem to notice his tense attitude and kept advancing. He placed a hand on the glass and stared at Sonic as if he was God himself, Sonic backed up against the far side of the tank pressing his quills against the glass.

"So this is what Doctor Robotnik has been working on. Fascinating..." He muttered before writing something down and taking some information from the computer closest to Sonic and leaving. Sonic stared at the door wondering if that was supposed to happen and where that man came from. Suddenly feeling sleepy though he pushed into the back of his mind before closing his eyes and falling asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello and thanks for reading. 
> 
> I'm slowly being sucked into the Sonic fandom again and at this point I have no regrets so Imma just enjoy this while I'm here and make the most of it.
> 
> Please pardon any mistakes I may have missed and let me know if you like this in the comments! :)


	3. First Steps

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I managed to finish this one pretty quickly and thought I could post this to celebrate as today is my birthday! I hope you enjoy this chapter! :)

"Are you sure this is the right way, we've only been down here once..." Silver asked ducking his head as the passed by another human. Siver continued to nervously tug at his gloves that he had gotten from Maria, they were white but had navy blue cuffs and similar gold rings around them like those of Shadow's but his were only for decoration and not so much to help him control his abilities. The day before when testing each other abilities it was found out that Silver was not able to harness Chaos energy like Shadow could but was, in fact, psychokinetic as he had managed to lift Shadow off the ground while they were sparring. Maria didn't like the thought of them fighting each other but after being reassured by her grandfather that this was not only necessary but that they wouldn't be hurting each other badly enough to threaten their lives.

"I've told, I've memorized the way there. Now, will you stop worrying." Shadow sighed. Silver nodded and ducked behind Shadow as they passed another scientist, Shadow didn't even bat an eye at his younger brother's behavior as even though they had only properly known each other for two days he had gotten used to Silver's quirks. When he and Maria had asked the white hedgehog why he was afraid of the other scientists but not Gerald although he was one as well he had looked away ashamed before answering.

_ "I just don't like the auras they give off, also the stare at me like I'm a bug the wanna dissect. I don't like it, Gerald's different though. He's very kind and gives off a calming aura that puts me at ease... I'm sorry- I'm babbling, aren't I?"  _

Maria had reassured him and Shadow-despite him not needing comfort, that they were safe here and no one would harm them. At least not on her watch.

They reached the door and Shadow reached for the panel, it switched to a number pad the last second as Gerald thought it would be a bother to take off their gloves every time they entered considering that their gloves were their only piece of clothing aside from their socks and shoes. He entered the code (3348201) and the door opened allowing the two mobians to enter. Silver immediately seemed to relax once they door shut behind them and happily made his way over to Sonic's tank where the blue hedgehog was sleeping soundly. Shadow had noticed he had begun to sleep more the past few days. When he and Silver asked Gerald about it the old man had said his body was using a lot of his energy to help his legs fully grow quicker. 

Silver reached out and began tapping softly on the glass to alert Sonic of their presence. The sleeping male stirred and slowly opened his eyes. When his sleepy haze cleared and he noticed who was in the room with him he instantly smiled and lit up like a Christmas tree. Sonic leaned forward and pressed his nose against the glass causing his face to squish funnily, Silver laughed while Sonic proceeded to make funny faces in the glass while Silver's peels of laughter echoed throughout the large lab. Shadow watched on silently happy that Silver was now fully relaxed and at ease, he wouldn't admit it but seeing Silver so full of anxiety made him upset. So when he watched how Sonic seemed to instantly cause all that worry to wash away by just being near Silver he couldn't help but feel a bit jealous that he wasn't able to do the same.

\---

"Hey, Sonic.'' Silver said suddenly catching the blue hedgehog's attention. He turned away from his daily staring match with Shadow showing the other he had his full attention. "Watch what I can do." Silver thrust his hand outward and glared at Shadow before a light cyan aura overtook Shadow and he was lifted off the ground. Sonic's watched on with stars in his eye while Silver flipped Shadow over making him float upside down, Sonic laughed at his brother's deadpan expression and flipped himself over as well while still being mindful of the wires attached to him.

"Silver, if you drop me I swear-"

"I'm not gonna drop you, I promise," Silver said and focused on flipping him upright putting Shadow gently on the ground. Shadow dusted himself off and shot a small glare in Silver's direction causing the albino to shrug and chuckle weakly. Their attentions were adverted to Sonic again when the other started to tap wildly on the glass trying to gain their attention again. His green eyes were burning with questions that he sadly couldn't voice so instead he pointed at Silver then mimic the action Silver had done when he focused on picking up Shadow the pointed at the ebony hedgehog.

"What..? I don't-"

"No, I can't do that. We haven't exactly found out what my powers include yet." Shadow answered seeming to understand just what Sonic was trying to say flawlessly. Sonic made more movements and soon what looked to be a game of charades began between the three hedgies, Silver tried to guess what Sonic was trying to covey but couldn't figure it out as well and quickly as Shadow could,

Sonic pointed to his quills then his eyes and the door, Silver frowned and tried to figure out what he had said but once again Shadow beat him to it. "Maria is at her classes right now, but I'm sure she'll stop by afterward," Shadow answered. Silver stared at the other with his mouth open and a look of disbelief playing on his face. Shadow turned and noticed his expression. "What?" He asked.

"Did-wh-How?!" Silver stammered causing Sonic to laugh silently behind his hands. Shadow shrugged and turned to Sonic again.

"It's fairly simple," He answered.

"Nothing about this is simple," Silver deadpanned causing Shadow to smile inwardly at the thought that Silver was finally getting comfortable enough around him to sass him like that.

"He pointed to his quills, which are blue. Then he pointed to his eyes meaning he was saying something about blue eyes. The only person he knows with blue eyes is Maria so when he pointed to the door I knew he was wondering where she was." Shadow explained, Silver looked to Sonic who nodded confirming what Shadow said.

"Huh," Was all he could mutter out.

Sonic formed his fingers into circles and brought them to his eyes then placed a finger under his nose. He then gestured vaguely to the tank he was in.

"Gerald hasn't said when you'll be able to come out yet," Sonic's expression fell and he looked to the ground in disappointment. "I'm sorry..." Shadow muttered. Sonic looked up and put on a weak smile and waved off his apology as if to say 'don't worry about it, it's not your fault.'

"Well, maybe we could ask him later," Silver suggested wanting to bring the mood back up. He looked to Sonic and smiled reassuringly to which Sonic returned with an eager nod and wide smile.

* * *

"Mr. Ronotnik, sir... um..." Silver fidgeting under his stare. Gerald chuckled and kneeled and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Silver, I told already. You don't have to be so formal with me, Gerald is just fine." Silver's face flushed and nodded.

"Sorry, G-Gerald... sir..." Silver stammered softly, Gerlad stood up and patted his head the turned to Shadow who was standing next to Silver.

"So what have you boys been up to lately? I heard you both cooperated well with your morning testing, I'm proud." Silver's heart swelled at the praise but he put it to the side opting to focus on what he and Shadow had come to Gerald for.

"Thank you, sir. But Shadow and I have a question we wanted to ask you," Silver said as confidently as he could. Gerald looked at the two of them before nodding waiting for them to continue. "Well, we.. uh... that is-"

"We wanted to ask about the progress on Sonic's legs development and if he would be fit to come out soon." Shadow interrupted much to Silver's annoyance but he didn't comment and nodded along. Gerald nodded and sat back in his chair before turning to his computer and began to pull up different files on Sonic.

"Well, they seem to be coming along alright so it might be alright." He answered while he continued to type and search through the files.

"It 'might' be alright?" Shadow questioned boldly and Silver turned to him with wide eyes at his tone, Gerald, however, didn't seem fazed in the slightest.

"Yes, I would give him just one more day just to make sure that his growth is complete and he's healthy." Gerald corrected himself, Shadow nodded at the answer. "Does that help?" Gerald asked turning around. Silver nodded and grabbed Shadow's hand before he pulled him along to the door.

"Thank you, Mr. Gerald!" Silver called over his shoulder as the left while Shadow echoed him quietly. Gerald smiled fondly as the two left.

* * *

Maria sped down the hallways as fast as she could go without pushing herself too hard holding onto Silver's and Shadow's hands the former was using his psychokinesis to float at her height was leading the way for once not caring about the human's they passed in the hallway as he was too excited. Shadow tried to hide it but Maria could see a glint in his red eyes that showed his true feelings about today and she knew he was just as excited about Sonic as she and Silver were.

The three of them all but ran to the lab and Silver nearly slammed into the door before Maria managed to open it. When it opened they were met with the sight of Gerald helping Sonic stand up whilst he coughed heavily getting all the fluid out of his system. At the sound of the door opening, Gerald turned around and chuckled at the sight of the other three quickly racing across the lab towards him and Sonic. Sonic coughed once more before blearily looking at them and smiling weakly, his hold on Gerald weakened and he shakily put a foot forward. Gerald hovered behind him in case he fell, Sonic stared ahead at Silver and Shadow as he took another slow step. Sonic glanced at his feet then the distance between them and took a deep breath before running towards them much to everyone's shock. He threw himself at the other two mobians and wrapped an arm both of them and laughing happily. His voice rang out louder than Silver's but softer than Shadow's.

Both hedgehogs were shocked but quick to recover and support their brother.

"My legs work!" Sonic cried happily and squeezed the other's tighter. Maria was unable to control herself and threw herself at her surrogate siblings and laughing happily. Shadow grunted at the impact while Silver giggled quietly. Sonic's eyes widened and he moved to hug Maria fully, the young girl, in turn, squeezed him just as tightly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm proud of how this chapter came out and I thought it was very cute. I may or may not be able to make a few more before I have to return my computer.
> 
> Please pardon any mistakes I may have made and don't hesitate to tell me your thoughts in the comments. :)


	4. We Don't Need Weapons To Protect Each Other

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter so soon, please don't get used to this as I'm not sure how many I'm going to be able to post before I won't be able to for a while.
> 
> Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

Sonic had never been happier than when he was right then after he finished hugging Maria he looked down at his legs and gave one a firm shake. He looked to the doctor and smiled brightly before hopping from on leg to the other laughing, he wouldn't admit it but he was a little afraid his legs would become crippled and he would never leave his stabilizer. The thought of being stuck in there separated from his family forever... it terrified him.

"No stiffness?" Gerald asked typing notes. Sonic bent his legs and jogged in place. Maria, Shadow, and Silver watched in silent anticipation as Sonic looked down at his bare feet then smiled up at Gerald.

"Nope!" He cried happily and jumped up once more for emphasis, "Good thing too, I was going stir crazy in that thing," He laughed.

"Indeed," Gerald smiled and looked to Maria who nodded and moved to the side of the lab and opened a cabinet she grabbed something that Sonic couldn't see from where he stood. She came forward wearing a soft smile, Sonic glanced at Shadow and Silver hoping they would tell him what was up. Shadow smirked at his confused expression while Silver openly smiled at him letting him know that they knew what was up but wouldn't tell him. Maria knelt in front of him and held out a bundle of red and white, Sonic stared at it confusedly before Maria handed it off to him. The blue hedgehog turned the bundle around in his hands noticing that what he was holding were red sneakers with a white strap and golden belt buckles and a pair of gloves. He looked at Maria in shock and she smiled back.

"I picked out everyone's shoes and gloves but Silver and Shadow helped a bit with yours," She explained while Sonic continued to stare at them in silence, she frowned when he didn't reply but was startled when he plopped onto the ground and began to quickly pull on his socks before slipping the shoes on as well. Two snaps from the buckles later and he was standing up tapping his feet on the ground with a blank look on his face. Silver, unnerved by the suddenly silent Sonic began to fidget and wring his hands together. "Sonic, are y-" She was cut off by the blue hedgehog throwing himself into her.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou! I love them so much, they feel so comfy!" Sonic rambled as he turned and tackled Silver and Shadow again. "You guys are the best!" He laughed while Shadow groaned and tried to shove him off.

* * *

Gerald couldn't have been happier, sure he knew the risks of bringing these creatures to life. They could have been hellbent on destroying everyone and everything, they could have been everything G.U.N. had warned him about but they weren't. Sure Shadow was a bit rough around the edges but he had shown on multiple occasions that he had a heart and cared for not only Maria but Silver and Sonic as well. Silver was kind and soft-spoken he was even reluctant to only spar with Shadow. Given how powerful he could become he only seemed to want to help Maria and his brothers. Sonic on the other hand just seemed happy to be alive, wanting nothing more than to be with Maria and his brothers.

These boys could prove to become valuable weapons but Gerald couldn't bring himself to see them that way, the had personalities and feelings. They were just as much as a person than any other human, he couldn't stand the thought of G.U.N. wanting to use them for there own ploys.

He watched with dread as the ship holding one of the representatives of G.U.N. pulled closer to the Ark.

* * *

  
"Missed me!" Sonic shouted as he dodged another one of Silver's attacks, the albino had taken to lifting objects around him a throwing them. If the target gets hit he could use the few seconds before they recover to hold them captive via his psychokinesis. It was a bit trickier to land a hit on Sonic than it was Shadow as they other turned out to have super speed like Silver had predicted when he had found out he was ecstatic that he could not only move but move quickly. Silver chalked it up to being stuck in his stabilizer for an extended period.

"I'll get you, just you wait!" Silver called back. At that moment Sonic had curled into a ball and used his speed to throw himself at Silver, the younger quickly put up a wall of energy to use as a shield. Sonic bounced off and stared wide-eyed at the cyan bubble surrounding his brother.

"That's so cool, when'd you learn to do that?!" Sonic shouted and spin dashed against but only bounced off of it again.

"I don't know, it was just a reflex!" Silver called back as he let it down and managed to grab Sonic using his powers and held him in the air. Sonic smiled and gave Silver a thumbs up.

"Nice shot, ya got me." He complimented as Silver put him down and stuck his hand out, Silver grabbed it and shook it.

"Thanks, you did well too," Silver said as they walked towards the door of the room given to them to spar. The door slid opened before they could reach it revealing a tall man who wore a military uniform and towered over them. Silver instinctively latched onto Sonic's arm as he normally did when in the presence of new people and Sonic positioned himself to partially cover the younger. He didn't like the look of this guy, he gave off a weird vibe and it didn't take having Silver's mind powers to feel it.

"My, my, that was quite the show," The man drawled and took a step forward but stopped when he saw how the two mobians bristled slightly. He laughed but it didn't sound friendly, "Where are my manners? Allow me to introduce myself, I am Harold Marson current commander of G.U.N. It is nice to finally meet the products of millions of our citizen's tax dollars." He said holding his hand out, Sonic scowled at it but decided he would humor the human for a bit and shook it.

"Sonic the fastest thing alive, and this is Silver," Sonic nodded to Silver who offered a small wave. The human-Harold stared at Silver for a little longer than Sonic would have like so he cleared his throat directing the man's attention back to him.

"Pleasure," Harold said as he let go of Sonic's hand. "Silver would you mind coming with me for a second, there is something I would like to discuss with you." He said as gestured to the door, Sonic's scowl deepened.

"And just what are you wanting to discuss with him?" Sonic inquired and crossed his arms over his chest. 

"Sonic, it's alright." Sonic and Silver looked behind the man and saw that Gerald had come by the room. The man was frowning which was a rare sight for both hedgehogs. He looked at Silver sadly and gestured for him to come, Silver stepped forward but was stopped when Sonic grabbed his hand. He looked back at him with fear and worry swimming in his golden eyes but managed to smile shakily.

"I'll be fine, Mr. Gerald will be there too." He whispered. Sonic sighed and let go of his hand, Harold smirked smugly at him as he left after Silver and Gerald. Sonic peeked out the door and watched them walk down the hallway once they turned the corner he sped off in the direction of where he thought Shadow would be.

* * *

Shadow closed his book at the sound of approaching footsteps with a long sigh. If it was who he thought it was going to be he knew that trying to read was going to be pointless as Sonic proved to be quite the chatterbox. A gust of wind blew the book back opened and the pages flipped widely before settling.

"Shadow!" Sonic cried causing the ebony hedgehog to startle at his tone.

"What's wrong? Weren't you and Silver supposed to be sparring?" Shadow asked taking in the sight of the other, his quills were standing on end nearly completely upright and his eyes were ablaze with emotion.

"We were but then this creep showed up and took Silver to talk to him along with the Doc," He rushed out.

"Well, if he's with the Doctor I don't think he'll be in trouble," Shadow said while picking up his book and walking toward the shelf he had gotten it from. Sonic followed him.

"You don't understand, even the Doc looked worried and Silver was so scared of that guy!" Sonic continued.

"Silver's scared of nearly everyone."

"This guy was different, he..." Sonic inhaled sharply causing Shadow to turn around and notice how distraught Sonic was about this. "He gave off a weird vibe... Made me uncomfortable and he kept staring Silver possessively and, and-"

"Okay, I believe you," Shadow cut him off with a raised hand. "Now what do you want to do about it?"

* * *

"I've told you before they're not meant for this sort of thing and you know that!" Gerald snapped at the commander causing Silver to flinch and duck his head while he watched both men converse. The conversation had started civil enough until Harold asked if Silver was interested in working with G.U.N. before Silver could get a word out Gerald who had been watching silently, for the most part, had begun to tell the man off.

"You're wasting such great potential making them stay up here, think about what we can accomplish," Harold tried to convince the doctor but the old man was not having it.

"You using them for destruction isn't going to accomplish  _ anything _ !"

"Why don't you let him decide instead of speaking for him?! He speaks, doesn't he?" Silver gulped when they both turned to face him, he wished Shadow and Sonic were with him then maybe he'd be able to summon enough courage to answer them.

"I-"

"Silver, you don't have to do anything thing this man wants you to, you have the right to choose for yourself," Gerald quickly said. 

"Shut up and let him speak! Now, boy, you have so much potential in you just imagine what you could do with your powers." Harold spoke over the doctor making Silver's attention snap to him again. The young albino looked between both of the humans, he most definitely did not want to go with Harold as he was much too scary for his liking. He trusted Gerald a lot more than he did him. But more than anything he wanted to stay with his brothers, and if he left with Harold he'd have to leave them behind and he didn't think he'd be able to do that. He opened his mouth to speak but was cut off again when the door hissed open and Sonic barged into the room along with Shadow and Maria hot on his heels. Immediately Silver felt relief wash over him at the sight of his siblings, Shadow stared hard at Harold while Sonic made his way over to him as Maria approached her grandfather.

"Maria told us that she had overheard what was going on," Shadow started his voice cold and dripping with venom as he spoke to the commander.

"Silver isn't going nowhere without us, and we sure as heck ain't going anything with you, Hank," Sonic snapped wrapping an arm around Silver's shoulders.

"Harold." The human corrected but his voice fell on deaf ears. "Besides it isn't up to you, your  _ brother _ is the one who gets to choose," He explained cooly. Sonic looked to Silver who was glancing between everyone with wide eyes, Sonic grabbed him by the shoulders and made the other face him fully.

"Silver, I'm not telling you what to choose. I know this is a big decision but me and Shadow trust you to do what you think is right and if you want to go that's fine we'll support you, but do not let this creep control you." He said softly so only Silver could hear. "I can't choose for you," He whispered, Silver's eyes darted to the floor then back up to him but with a determined fire burning brightly. Silver nodded and Sonic let go so the other could turn to face the commander. Silver took a deep breath then looked up at Harold with a stern look, well as stern as he could manage but he made sure to look serious even though on the inside he was shaking and wanted to curl up into a ball and never come out.

"Commander Harold," He began and the human raised an eyebrow at his formalities but didn't comment and let the other continue. "I would like to thank you for the opportunity-"

"Excellent, we can get you started on your training as soon as possibly-"

"But I refuse to leave my family and the Ark," Silver finished ignoring how he had been interrupted. "My powers are pretty strong but I'm still learning and I just don't think I'm ready to leave my family or if I'll ever be. I am truly flattered you see potential in me but I want to use that potential elsewhere, preferably so I can help cure Maria." He finished. The room was silent and Silver thought he was going to self-combust if someone didn't say anything soon, luckily Sonic never had a problem being the ice breaker.

"Welp, now that that's settled you can feel free to leave now, Hank," Sonic said grabbing Silver's hand and moving to the door. Shadow and Maria followed leaving the doctor with the angry commander.

"He has spoken, do well to respect his wishes, Commander," Gerald said as he passed the other man.

"This won't be the last you see of me, Gerald Robotnik," He spat and left the room. Gerald sighed and ran a hand down his face as he watched the man leave, despite the threat he had just received he wasn't worried at the moment like he thought he should be. All he could think about was that Silver truly considered the Ark his home and him and Maria his family, he felt a warm feeling enter his chest as he allowed a smile to pass over his face. Even if he couldn't always protect them he knew without a doubt those boys would look out for each other no matter what.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you tell how much I love triple S yet?
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter, please pardon any mistakes I may have missed and don't hesitate to leave a comment. Let me know if there is a scenario you want to see with out baby boys and their big sister!
> 
> Till next time! :)


	5. Visions With Or Without Meaning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter! Yay!
> 
> I'm trying my hardest to pump out as many as I can before my hiatus. I hope you guys enjoy this one, it's kinda short but I find that short chapters help me post faster.
> 
> On with the chapter!

_ "I want you guys to see Earth for me," _

_ "Maria!" _

_ "Please, don't do this you can come with us!" _

_ "Maria, stop!" _

_ A gunshot rang out loudly a second after the lever is pulled. _

Silver gasped and fell out of his bed with a loud thump, he couldn't see because of the sheets he had managed to tangle himself in. After thrashing about for a few seconds he managed to free himself and came face to face with his brothers who were staring at him in confusion. Sonic pointed to his head and then Silver with a questioning look in his eyes, Silver sighed and figured it was another one of those days when Sonic just didn't feel like talking. Sonic had explained that nothing was wrong with him it was just that some time talking was hard for him even he didn't understand why. It had happened a couple of times already and Maria had helped them in taking up sign language with her so they could communicate better on those days. He was learning quite well but sometimes reverted to his charades so he mostly hung out with Shadow on those days. Silver looked to Shadow waiting for him to translate and the other sighed and glanced at Sonic letting the blue hedgehog know to repeat himself.

"Bad dream?" Shadow asked looking back with a frown, not one of annoyance but worry. Silver had gotten better at understanding Shadow as the months passed so he could tell he wasn't going to ridicule him for having night terrors like a little kid. Silver nodded and looked away as Sonic came closer and began to help him fully untangle from the sheets before helping him stand. Sonic pointed at Silver then his mouth then gestured to himself and Shadow.

"He wants to know if you want to talk about it," Shadow translated quickly. Silver looked at both of them before shaking his head and sitting on his bed, Sonic frowned and looked to Shadow silently asking him what he should do next. Shadow sighed and moved to sit on Silver's right Sonic followed and sat on his left before patting Silver gently on the shoulder. The younger looked to him and Sonic flashed a small smile to which Silver returned he looked to Shadow and smiled at him as well mentally thanking him. Shadow nodded once his face carefully blank but Silver could see what he was feeling through his eyes, Silver thought it was ironic that Shadow's eyes were the most expressive out of the three of them.

* * *

Silver pondered on just what his dream meant, he had never even seen a gun in action so what brought them into the dream. He was afraid to say anything to Sonic and Shadow as he didn't want to make them worry and Maria was not an option. The three hedgehogs sat at a table in the Ark's cafeteria along with Maria who had a book in front of her and Sonic as she was still trying to help him learn. Shadow sat in front of Silver and ate his food silently while watching Maria struggle to help Sonic to understand. 

Shadow turned and noticed Silver poking at his food while staring off into space. He cleared his throat catching the other's attention, Silver jolted and looked to Shadow with wide eyes. Shadow decided to ignore his reaction as he knew Silver didn't like to be put in the spotlight. "Since it's finally quiet what do you want to do?" Shadow asked earning a playful shove from Sonic at his teasing sent toward the blue one. Silver laughed at their exchange feeling some of the tension building up inside melt away.

"I don't have anything in mind. Do you guys have anything you want to do?" Silver asked looking at the other three. Sonic looked down at the book and thought hard for a moment before snapping his fingers and looking to Maria making fast gestures with his hands some Silver recognized but Sonic moved too quickly to for him to translate himself. 

"Sonic that's a great idea!" Maria seemed to understand and nodded before looking at the others with a bright smile. "He said 'The other day he found a place perfect for stargazing', he wanted to show us but it slipped his mind," She translated looking to Shadow to see if she got it right when he nodded she smiled brighter.

"That sounds nice, I don't think we should do anything rough today," Shadow said as he stood up, Sonic smiled and nodded before looking to Silver.

"I think that's sound fine, I'm not in the mood to spar much today," Silver shrugged before standing up as well. Sonic silently cheered and followed them with Maria close behind. They left the cafeteria and made their way down the halls with Sonic in front showing them the way. By the time they made it to their destination Silver's nightmare was completely forgotten. Sonic stopped in front of a large lookout window located in a large part of the Ark that was unused most of the time surprisingly. The space was empty of the normal lab equipment the four had grown accustomed to having around and was devoid of any people aside from them. Sonic sped over to a large pillar that supported the roof and pointed upward than to Silver, the albino didn't need Shadow to translate that one for him.

"What if I drop you guys!?" Silver exclaimed before Shadow could think to translate for him.

"Silver you pick me and Sonic up daily," Shadow pointed out.

"That's different, I've only held you guys a few feet off the ground," Silver shook his head and bit his lip.

"Silver, it's okay if you don't want to. But we trust you, okay?" Maria said sweetly making Silver want to punch himself for disappointing Maria or being the cause of her disappointment.

"Okay, I do it!" Silver shouted and extended a hand before picking up Sonic first, the other smiled widely a flailed a bit but stopped once Silver began to slowly lift him higher. Once right above the perch Silver dropped him gently, Sonic peeked over and waved with a giant smile before giving Silver a thumbs up. "Alright, Shadow you're next." Shadow nodded and stepped forward, unlike Sonic he didn't react as the cyan glow enveloped him. Silver did the same thing he did to Sonic and once Shadow was safely above it let him go, the other peek over with Sonic and nodded to signal that Silver had done okay. Silver sighed shakily and nodded back before turning to Maria who stood patiently with her hands clasped in front of her.

"You'll do fine, Silver." She reassured and he gave her a small smile before lifted both of his hands(just to be extra sure he had ultimate focus and wouldn't drop her) before lifting Maria off the floor. Maria let out a breathless giggle as she flew upward towards her brothers, Silver went slower as to make sure he didn't mess up. When Maria landed and waved at him he let out a sigh and waved back. Silver lifted himself and landed before being tugged into a one-armed hug from Sonic who gave him a thumbs up. Silver smiled back and looked over at Shadow was staring at the window, Silver opened his mouth to call his name but was cut off when he saw the sight out the window.

The stars were shining bright in an array of colors that Silver didn't know possible but what took his breath away was the sight of the planet below. Silver had never fully looked at Earth but had always been curious why Maria wanted to go there so badly. The young male looked to the blond who was staring out the window as well with misty eyes, he moved to comfort her but Sonic beat him to it. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it before pointing to her then the planet and nodding. Shadow looked over to Maria with a determined glare.

"Maria, you'll get to go back to Earth one day. We'll make sure of it." Shadow said while Sonic nodded with his determined expression.

"You guys..." Maria whined and wiped at her eyes. Silver grabbed her other hand and smiled up at her.

"One day we'll all go to Earth together," Silver confirmed as well. Maria let out a small sob and wrapped all three of them into a hug.

"One day..." She sobbed and held them tighter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was fun to write, I wanted to go into more detail with the dream but thought it would be kinda pointless if you know what I mean. I also want to have as much fluff as possible before the inevitable angst train crashes in full force.
> 
> Did you like how I made Sonic selectively mute? I wanted to add some characteristics of Classic Sonic to our blue boy since sadly Classic won't be in this AU as technically he doesn't exist because Sonic was created and not born so he was never a little kid but that won't stop him from acting like one! :)
> 
> Please pardon any mistakes I might have missed and don't hesitate to let me know what you think in the comments. I love your comments they make me want to write even more! Let me know if there's a scenario you want to see with out triple S babies and I might think about adding it to the story.


	6. Practice Makes Perfect

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Here's another chapter, I hope enjoy this.

Shadow closed his eyes and inhaled deeply through his nose trying to concentrate trying to get a feel of his powers. Gerald had figured out through a series of tests that Shadow's powers came from the Chaos energy that made up most of the planet's energy. Gerald had decided to teach the boys about the history of Chaos energy as it was what helped bring them to life. Silver had told Shadow that meditating helped him figure out how to control his powers and offered the option to his brother. Shadow was reluctant not to see how sitting in silence for hours on end would help but after watching Silver do it a couple of times he noticed that not only did it help him learn more about his powers but helped calm Silver down.

It was not unknown that the youngest of the three seemed to have a lot of anxiety, Silver tried not to let it get in the way but didn't always manage to do so. He had his fair share of anxiety attacks for numerous reasons. Once Silver had started doing mediation daily he had proved to be much calmer and even more confident in himself.

A loud groan broke Shadow's concentration and he opened his eyes to glare at the source of the noise which happened to be a certain blue hedgehog that was hanging off of his bed upside down. Shadow growled lowly in the back of his throat and opened his mouth to snap at Sonic but was cut off by when Silver sent a pillow flying from his bed right into Sonic's face making the other fall off his bed with a startled yelp.

"What part of 'I'm trying to mediate' don't you understand?" He snapped causing Shadow to blink in surprise. Sonic, however, wasn't surprised in the slightest.

"But, I'm so bored..." Sonic moaned loudly not even bothering to pick himself off the ground.

"Then go run around the Ark," Silver muttered closing his eyes.

"But I already did that..."

"Why don't see what Maria's up to then?" Shadow offered and looked down at the green jewel in front of him. Gerald had told him it was called a Chaos Emerald he happened to have one on hand as he had used it when making him and his brothers. There were seven of them in total and each one held unparalleled power, Gerald suggested that if Shadow was near one and exposed to its energy it might help him get a grasp on his powers. He had been trying for several days but all his efforts had yet to bear results.

"She's still in her lessons..." Sonic said as he pulled himself off of the ground. He glanced at Shadow then looked at the gem on his bed. "Have you've been able to get anything from it yet?" Sonic asked suddenly taking in interest in Shadow's progress. Shadow would take his curiosity over his boredom any day so he decided to humor his brother.

"Not yet, but I think I might be getting close. It feels like something is there but just locked away..." Shadow noticed Sonic's confused expression and sighed. "I think if I try a bit harder I might finally get it." He simplified and Sonic nodded crossing his legs and resting his chin in the palm of his hand and staring intently at the gem.

"I don't get it but I know that gem is going to help you unlock your powers," Sonic said and leaned forward to pluck the jewel off of the sheets and held it in his hands. Sonic closed his eyes and clenched the jewel tighter causing Shadow to frown in confusion. Sonic stayed that way for a few silent seconds only this wasn't Sonic's usual silence as even Silver reopened his eyes to see what was going on. Silver gasped and pointed at the Chaos Emerald causing Shadow to look and notice that the emerald had begun to glow brighter within Sonic's grasp.

"Sonic?" Shadow called but it didn't seem to reach the other's ears. The emerald continued to glow brighter it's light seeming to develop Sonic as well. Then in a flash Sonic was gone along with the emerald leaving the other two hedgehogs gaping with wide eyes.

"What just happened?" Silver whispered.

* * *

"How did you even get up there?!" Maria gasped looking up at the ceiling beams in the cafeteria where she was just about to grab an afternoon snack after she had taken her medicine. When she noticed a bright light by the ceiling beams. The light faded after a second before revealing a very sickly looking Sonic, the poor thing bent over and vomited over the edge making his puke splatter on the ground. Luckily Maria had been far enough to be out of the splash zone but her worry quickly overrode her disgust and she made her way over.

"I-I don't know..!" Sonic gasped out still clutching his stomach and looking a little green. "I w-was in our r-room and I picked up this-" He shakily held up the green Chaos Emerald to show her. "Then it felt like I w-was being squashed and s-stretched at the s-same time and t-there was a bright light and-and w-when I opened my eyes I was u-up here..." He groaned out and dry heaved over the opposite edge.

"Do Shadow and Silver know you're in here?" She asked sidestepping some more vomit that rained down with a grimace.

"I don't think so..." Sonic groaned laying down on the beam not bothering to move anymore.

"I'm going to go get Silver so he can get you down," Maria said backing up slowly. "Don't go anywhere!" She called over her shoulder as she left the cafeteria. Sonic lazily waved his hand in the air.

"Not like I can go anywhere if I tried..." He whined.

* * *

"Silver! Sonic's stuck in the rafters in the cafeteria!" Maria shouted as the door to the boys' room opened. Silver and Shadow glanced at each other and sighed in relief. Maria frowned at their reaction, she thought they would be more worried. Shadow noticed her expression and held up a hand.

"We thought he blew himself up using the emerald," He explained and Maria couldn't help but laugh at his words.

"Well, he's alright if not a bit sick but we need Silver to get him down," Maria said and grabbed their hands before dragging them out into the hallway. Soon enough they made it to the cafeteria. The automatic doors slid open and the three of them rushed inside.

"Sonic?" Maria called up to the ceiling. A hand flopped over the edge of one of the metal beams and waved slowly.

"Still here," Sonic groaned.

"Do you know what happened?" Silver asked as he began to lift himself and floated towards the other. On the ground, Shadow glanced at the ground and grimaced before looking back to the ceiling with a worried frown.

"I think we can teleport using the emerald," Sonic ground out as he pushed himself up, Silver held him up with his powers before bringing him down.

"Teleport?" Shadow asked as he felt something stir in the back of his mind. "Chaos Control..." He found himself muttering.

"Chaos Control?" Silver asked turning to Shadow as Maria tried to help Sonic stand up.

"I'm sure that's what happened to him," Shadow said and walked to Sonic letting the other lean against him and took the emerald from him.

"Well, whatever it was sucked and I don't think I'm ever going to try that again." Sonic groaned as Shadow shifted his arm to wrap over his shoulder allowing him to put some of his weight against the other. 

"I wouldn't say that. I'm going to need you to do it again so you can teach me how," Sonic moaned loudly but didn't argue. 

"Well, before you guys try anything we should let Sonic rest a bit," Maria suggested looking back at the vomit decorating the floor behind them.

"Yeah, not a great idea to eat before doing that," Sonic told them as they walked out.

* * *

"Chaos Control!" Shadow shouted and appeared behind Silver before delivering a roundhouse kick to the back of his head. Silver flew and landed face-first on the padded ground with a low groan.

"You did it!" Sonic shouted as he ran towards his brothers. "Sucks that you can only do it when you have the emerald though," Silver sat up rubbing his face.

"Well, I would say you've got it down." Silver said and grabbed Shadow's hand when he offered it to him, the other helped him up.

"It would seem so," Shadow said and looked to the gem held in his hand with a small frown marring his features.

"You should be happy, Shad!" Sonic said patting him on the back. "At least you can do it without puking."

"Indeed," Shadow said smirking at his brother who laughed bashfully.

"I wonder if I could do it..." Silver muttered to the floor in thought. Sonic smiled in his direction.

"I'm sure you could but it's nothing worth losing your lunch over," He earning a small chuckle from the younger.

"You're proof of that," Silver jabbed making Sonic bark out a loud laugh.

"Hey! That was only because I wasn't expecting it the first time!" He defended himself. Shadow chuckled as he walked past them and towards the door with the emerald still in hand.

"I need to bring this back to the doctor, do you guys want to come with me?" Shadow asked waiting by the door, Silver nodded and made his way over with Sonic right behind him.

"We should see if Maria's done with her lessons afterward," Sonic suggested as they walked down the hallway leading to Gerald's main office. They passed a man wearing a military uniform but paid him no mind as they conversed with each other, the man watched them pass with great interest. He lifted his hand to the side of his face and muttered something under his breath.

"They're becoming stronger, we need to contain them while we have the chance," He peeked around the corner and watched the hedgehogs leave his sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's pretty short but here it is! So I'm sorry to say but after this I won't be updating for a while due to not having a computer or device to write on. 
> 
> This does mean I will abandon this story I have a plan for this and am pretty excited about writing it. I hate having to do this but I can't help it or do anything about it. So I would like to apologize from the bottom of my heart if this upsets any of you guys.
> 
> Or maybe I'm just getting a big head and none you really care if this continues or not either way I'm sorry.
> 
> Please pardon any mistakes I may have missed and let me know what you think in the comments.


	7. Screaming For Our Mistakes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, yeah I know what I said but I couldn't help myself and so I pushed myself to write just one last chapter because I wanted to at least get past this part of the story.
> 
> So either way hope you enjoy it.

Maria knew something was wrong when she saw the commander aboard the Ark again, against her judgment she decided to follow him and see what he wanted this time. At the moment she was currently leaning against the door to her grandfather's office eavesdropping on the two adults conversing inside, she nervously bit her lip as she tried to make out what they were saying. She only manages to fully hear when they started to yell, surprisingly it wasn't Gerald who snapped first.

"You had your chance and you didn't take it! It wouldn't have to be this way if you would have just handed them over as we discussed!" Harold shouted.

"And I've told you before that they weren't created to be weapons, they were made to help cure my granddaughter!" The older male snapped back. Maria heard something slam loudly and winced.

"She isn't going to be cured so give it up and move on!" Maria felt her eyes sting with unshed tears as she began to feel as if this was her fault.

"She's my granddaughter, not some item meant to be thrown away!" Gerold hollered.

"That is not the point here! If you won't hand over those abominations I'll have to call in my forces to deal with this the hard way!" Maria gasped as she heard footsteps come towards her and began to run in the other direction. She pushed herself to run faster and faster despite how her lungs began to burn and her chest began to tighten with fear and strain. She slammed against the sparring room door and it sild open making her fall over and collapse onto the floor. Her brother shared a collective gasp before calling out to her as the ran to her side, Sonic reached her first and helped her into a sitting position. Silver handed her a water bottle they kept on hand during training and she greedily gulped it down.

"Maria, what's going on?" Shadow asked softly kneeling at her side, she took a few labored breaths trying to get her words out but not succeeding.

"Breathe, Maria you need to breathe," Silver told her inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly he did it a few times with her until she calmed down enough to take another drink of water.

"You good now?" Sonic asked with his hand hovering over her shoulder. She nodded before taking another deep breath and looked up at them with an expression of fear and anger.

"The commander's back," She said finally and Silver gasped and covered his mouth. "He's trying to take you guys away and he said he'd hurt Grandfather if he got in his way, we need to leave right away!" Maria shouted and began to get up.

"Whoa, whoa. Wait for a second, how are we supposed to get off the Ark? And we aren't leaving you and the Doc behind!" Sonic cried as the three began to follow Maria out into the hall.

"I never said you had to, but first I need to get you guys to the escape pods, and then I'll try to get Grandfather." She said and shoved them into a room with several pods that looked a lot like the stasis tanks they had been made in. 

Maria rushed to a panel nearby and began to type in several commands, an alarm began to sound along with bright red flashing lights. Maria and the hedgehogs jumped at the sudden noise but Maria turned back to her task and began to type faster. The pods let out a long beep before letting out a hissing noise as they opened, Maria cheered quietly and grabbed Silver and Sonic before shoving them into separate pods and helping them close after making sure they were settled. Silver clung to Maria's hand before she pulled away and looked up at her, his golden eyes were filled to the brim with fear and worry. Maria leaned forward and placed a small kiss on his head before squeezing his hand.

"Promise me you'll come back with Mr. Gerald?" He whispered and Maria nearly didn't hear him over the wiling sirens, she nodded though a smiled reassuringly before shutting the pod door and making sure it was fully sealed shut. She turned to Sonic who threw himself into her arms and wrapped his arms around her neck. She laughed weakly and hugged him back before pulling away and helping him inside his pod.

"Please be careful," Sonic pleaded his green eyes bright with worry and fear. Maria nodded and gave him a quick peck on the forehead as she had done to Silver. When Sonic's pod closed with a loud click Maria turned to Shadow and pulled him towards a third pod he stopped before it and looked at her. His eyes were a blazing fire of worry and fear like his brothers but he was still trying to be strong, Maria bit her lips and hugged him close to her chest to which he returned. Shadow was the one to pull away and step into the pod without another word, as the pod closed he nodded to Maria and she knew he was telling her in his way to be careful. She nodded back before locking the pod and running to the door again, she turned back once more taking in the sight of her little brothers whom she had come to love very dearly.

Silver was staring at her with tears in his eyes and had his hands on the glass as if he wanted to break free just to be with her. Sonic was leaning against the glass as well but was struggling to mask his fear and worry with a small smile directed towards her. Shadow was standing still with wide eyes as if he was regretted his choice of stepping in the pod. Maria gave a small wave before rushing out of the room. 

She darted as fast as her body could allow back to her grandfather's office on the way there she saw several soldiers and made sure to avoid them each time. As she got closer she could hear Gerald yelling at Harold, still being cautious she peeked around the corner and bit her tongue to stop herself from gasping loudly. Two guards were holding her grandfather down while a third held a gun to his head to keep him from moving. In front of it, all stood Harold who wore a shit-eating grin as he stared down at the elder male.

"It didn't have to be this way Doctor, you still have time to redeem yourself," He said and leaned down. "What are the rats' weaknesses, what will kill them? If we let them live they'll grow stronger and eventually turn against us, so you telling me will be doing the world a favor."

"They won't go against us unless you give them a reason to!" Gerald spat, causing the commander to sigh and straighten up as he did he looked straight at Maria and she couldn't stop the yelp that left her mouth as she ducked behind the wall again. She held her hand over her chest as her breathing picked up and she felt panic begin to set in, Harold stormed over to her hiding spot and stared down at her.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" He said stepping forward as Maira stepped back looking fearfully up at the man. "You're the girl who seemed to be pretty close to those experiments, aren't you?" He sneered and Maria gulped. "Be a good little girl and tell me where the rats are." He demanded. Maria took a deep breath and stared at him with a steely glint and backed up a step when Harold took a step forward.

"Don't you hurt her! She has nothing to do with it!" Gerald hollered but was cut off from speaking again by a kick to his stomach. Maria winced but didn't take her eyes off of the man in front of her.

"I'm not going to tell you anything, and by the way mister," She said as she took another cautious step back when Harold's face began to twist into one of rage. "They're hedgehogs, not rats." She said before pivoting on her heels and running back to the room she had left her brothers in. Harold snarled and lunged at the place she was in a mere second ago.

"After her!"

Maria didn't look back as she heard several pairs of footsteps begin to follow her. She dashed into the room startling her brothers.

"Maria!" Silver shouted with fear and relief that she was okay. The young girl slammed the lockdown button locking the door behind her.

"What's going on?!" Sonic shouted as Maria began to fiddle with the panel again.

"Where's Gerald?!" Shadow yelled and Maria flinched but didn't reply. Outside the door, something slammed into the metal before gunshots were fired and the door was torn open. Maria screamed and dove for the lever that would activate the pods and send them to Earth.

"Step away from the lever, kid!" The soldier shouted and Maria looked to him with tears falling from her cheeks as she trembled her courage from earlier spent and in its place fear rooted itself deep inside her chest and made it hard for her to breathe.

"Stop!"

"Don't shoot her!"

"Please, Maria!"

The blond glanced at the man before looking at her brothers. She put on a smiled despite the tears that flowed down her reddened cheeks.

"I'm sorry,"

"No..."

"I won't get to go back with you guys after all..."

"Maria stop! You can't do this!" Sonic screamed as tears of his own began to spill over from his eyes. Next to him Silver pounded against the glass and was yelling incoherently.

"I'm warning you!" The soldier yelled again aiming his gun at the child.

"Go see Earth for me," She whispered but her voice rang loud in each of their ears. "Sayonara... Little brothers..."

"Maria!"

"You can't do this!"

"Stop!"

All three screamed in unison as Maria pulled the lever down and a gunshot ran out.

* * *

"I think the freak went this way!"

A young fox kit dove through several bushes and threw himself into a small cave he ran by. He curled into a ball hugging his knees close to his chest and held his breath as he heard his attackers run past without seeing his hiding place. After several minutes of silence, he decided it was safe and moved out of the small cave but stopped when some that sunlight reflected off something metallic and hit his eyes making him wince. He looked back and noticed something was buried deep within the ground. He brushed his hand over the exposed metal and felt that it was vibrating. He took his hand back in shock before backing up and looking at the object at a different angle, he noticed a smooth material was hiding underneath what looked to be years worth of dirt and grime. He scrubbed at it but yelped and jumped back when he uncovered a face.

It was the face of someone sleeping, they were still alive and Miles didn't have any clue how that was possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay.
> 
> I'm sorry.
> 
> I mean it this time.
> 
> This is the last chapter I will be posting for a while.
> 
> Please pardon any mistakes I may have missed and let me know what you think in the comments.


	8. New Beginnings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to point out that in future chapters I will be trying to follow what happens in Sonic Adventure 2 but as I've never played the game myself and only have a vague recollection of what happens thanks to Sonic X it won't be the same. 
> 
> Sorry if that disappointing any of ya'll!

Sonic didn't know where he was or what happened after he heard the- Nope not going there. He didn't know where Silver and Shadow were or even if they were alive. The thought of them being dead, of being alone without them chilled him to the core and he shivered pulling into himself more.

It all happened years ago but to him, it felt like yesterday. He had been found by a young fox kit by the name of Miles who had helped get him out of the pod. The kid didn't look any older than four years old, he had told Sonic that he didn't have a home because he was discriminated by the others in his home village hence was he was running away and how he managed to stumble upon Sonic's pod. When Sonic asked the kit why he was chased out of his home Miles flinched before curling two appendages that came from his backside around him and looked warily up at Sonic to gauge his reaction. It was because he was branded a mutant as he was born with two tails. 

When Sonic didn't react as he thought he would he was shocked, to say the least, Sonic the went on to explain that he had seen weirder things. He even mentioned that he wasn't normal himself before catching himself and shying away from that sort of topic. 

He didn't want to think about the Ark, not yet anyway. He'd have plenty of time later to break down and curse himself for being useless.

Miles then decided he wanted to stay with Sonic as he was one of the very few people to accept him. Sonic was reluctant at first because he didn't know if G.U.N was still looking for him and his brothers but when he asked Miles what the date was he was stunned to learn that several decades had passed. That meant even if Maria and Gerald had survived the attack they were long gone. It hurt to realize that he was alone in this new world but then he looked to his side and would see Miles curled up in a ball snuggling into his side and realize he had been given a second chance. A second chance at having a family again, Miles-later on he had nicknamed him Tails when he found out he wasn't very fond of his real name- and many others he had the pleasure to meet over the years would become his second family and he swore with everything he had that he would not let them be taken like his previous family.

Sonic still believed that Shadow and Silver could be out there, he still looked for them every chance he got. He had scoured every place on the Earth but still couldn't find them despite using his speed to his advantage. Running through Earth's vast spaces for the first time had been an experience, to say the least. It was very different the running through the halls of the Ark-no stop don't think about that.

Sonic debated asking Tails to help him find his brothers as when they other began to get older he showed to be very efficient with science and mechanics so he knew the young kit would be able to help and would be glad to. But then that would mean explaining what happened before he was sent to earth and how he was made. He wouldn't admit but he was scared to tell the other about his past, he knew Tails was curious but Sonic had shut down any questions asked relating to how he was thought to have gotten his speed or how he had learned about the Chaos Emeralds. Tails left the subject alone but as the years past it was becoming harder to dance around the subject as more unexplainable things kept occurring. Sonic had proven to be able to use the Chaos Emeralds and their power to become what he liked to call 'Super Sonic' as well be able to sense their presence like one of their friends' Knuckles.

Knuckles was an Echidna that protected the Master Emerald, he had been tricked by a human Sonic was shocked to learn was descendant of Gerlad and Maria, more on that subject later though. Knuckles was shocked when he met Sonic as he told the blue hedgehog he was bursting at the seams with Chaos energy. He told him and Tails that having that much power could prove to be dangerous but Sonic had been fine as he was for years now so he brushed it off saying Knuckles was just paranoid.

The human, however, seemed to be hellbent on ruling over the world well that and killing Sonic and those who stood with him. His name was Ivo Robotnik, however, Sonic refused to call him by his real name as it felt like he was tainting the memory of his creator and sister. So he gave him a nickname as he did to a lot of people, Eggman. He and his friends referred to him and Doctor Eggman, mainly because he looked particularly egg-shaped. It made the man furious by after a while he accepted that for as long he would try to take over the world Sonic would be there to try and stop his plans and call him by the silly nickname.

Sonic had been on lots of adventures as the years past and met a lot of different people but none of them could replace his brothers. Some days when the memories wouldn't stay under the tightly locked lid Sonic felt like giving up on everything he had worked for, he didn't think he deserved to be happy when Maria had to die so he could live. Slowly though as the years continued to pass he got better and felt like he could live with his past mistakes firmly behind him and live for his friends and the world he swore to protect because he knew that was what she and his brothers would want him to do. Sure he missed them, a day didn't go by when he didn't think about what he could have done differently that day but he didn't let it bring him down. 

He was given another chance and he'd be damned to let it pass him by. Sonic smiled up at the moon and stars before zipping back into his and Tails' shared house. He passed by the young fox's workshop and shook his head with a fond smile when he saw Tails was fast asleep at his workbench drooling slightly over his blueprints. Quickly zipping to the kit's room and fetching a blanket he then moved to place it over his shoulders and ruffle his head lightly.

_ Yeah... Things are getting better. _ He thought to himself as he moved to his room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I've figure something out. Before I had to give my computer back I managed to write at least five more chapters, so I can at least have something to post over the summer. I'm still figuring out a posting schedule so it might be a while before I decided to post again. I don't want to just post back to back and not have anything left to post.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter and if you did please let me know in the comments, I enjoy your feedback.
> 
> Please pardon any mistakes I may have overlooked. And stay safe and healthy! :)


	9. Different But Still The Same

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so here goes nothing. I'm going to try and post what I have done but I want to be careful enough to not post everything so that way when I start to get back into writing I'll still have something to post.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter of Three Times The Love!

Tails perked up at the sound of footsteps coming down the hallway and into the kitchen where he was sitting at the table eating a late breakfast. The kitsune turned around and smiled at the sight of his surrogate elder brother yawning quietly as he shuffled over to the fridge.  
  
"Morning Sonic!" The young male chirped happily, the blue mobian waved over the fridge door. Tails frowned at the lack of reply before his eyes softened in understanding, today was just another one of those days. When it first happened Tails had been worried something was wrong with Sonic but after a lot of reassurance when he could speak again that this was just something that happened to him sometimes Tails began to worry less. He realized that worrying less about when Sonic fell silent made the hedgehog feel better about it and recover faster. The young kit then all but begged Sonic to teach him sign language, Sonic easily agreed but the fox noticed something akin to sadness in Sonic's gaze when they sat together and he taught Tails how to sign. He naturally didn't question it as he knew Sonic would talk (or sign) about it if he wanted to but it still bothered him.  
  
Sonic was a naturally happy person and Tails knew that didn't mean he had the occasional moment where he just didn't want to smile. It was just such a stark comparison to his normal personality it used to surprise Tails, however over the years they continued to spend together the kit gradually got used to it and was able to help Sonic through those times.  
  
So when Sonic came in that morning and silently said good morning Tails didn't bat an eye once he realized what kind of day it was for the hero of Mobius and instead decided to ask him how he slept the same way the older male greeted him. Sonic let a small smile overtake his face as he watched Tails sign to him, the kit would never know just how much it meant to him to have someone understand him like this.  
  
'Great, though I think I slept wrong my back is killing me,' He signed back after he sat at the table with the milk and cereal next to him while Tails passed him a bowl and spoon. Tails leaned back and took a bite of his food while he waited for Sonic to look up from making his breakfast before he could sign back to him.  
  
'Maybe it's not because of how you slept but because you're getting old,' Tails smiled cheekily when Sonic gave him a small glare without any heat behind it.  
  
'Someone's getting sassy lately,' Sonic quipped back and took a bite of his food. Tails laughed quietly behind his hands.  
  
'Learned from the best!' He smiled at Sonic's baffled expression and finished up his food before placing his bowl atop the many other dishes in the sink. Tails frowned at the growing pile before shrugging and turning back to the blue hedgehog, he'd just do them later when they needed more dishes. Tails pulled his Miles Electric off the counter where he had set it before making his breakfast and sat across Sonic again. He tapped away at the device before sliding it over to Sonic, the speedster paused in raising his spoon to his mouth and looked down at the hand-held computer with great interest. On the screen were three red dots that were blinking on the lower part of the screen were three dots but they were green. He looked up from the device so Tails could explain.  
  
'The green ones are the three Chaos Emeralds we found last week and the red ones are the ones we still need,' Tails explained and let his hands rest on the table while he waited for Sonic to reply.  
  
'There are two missing,' Sonic pointed out and sat the device down while he picked his spoon up again.  
  
'I think Eggman has them, we'll need to get them back before he thinks of a way to use them.' Sonic nodded and drank the rest of the milk from his bowl and stood up placing it in the sink. He turned to Tails with a large smile and excitement in his eyes.  
  
'Well, what are we waiting for?!' Sonic said before racing to the garage where the Tornado was parked. Tails chuckled and grabbed his Miles Electric before following the other.

* * *

When they arrived at the closest location that one of the emeralds were they were not surprised to find that Eggman was there as well. Not wanting to be spotted Tails had to land the plane a little ways away, the two mobians then had to sneak around the many badniks roaming the area before they managed to find the emerald thanks to Sonic being able to sense it when nearby. The only problem was just as Sonic made a move to grab it he had been spotted by not a badnik but the old Doctor himself. He had screamed and spouted off the usual nonsense he did at Sonic as the blue blur sped around dodging the rain of bullets and lasers sent his way.  
  
Tails was in the air holding onto the emerald, the fox was surprised they had found the white one so early into their search as it normally was the hardest one to find for some reason or another. He held onto the jewel tightly and batted away any of the flying badniks that came his way with his namesakes. He ran out of breath shortly and landed close to where Sonic had begun to get cornered, Tails faced the robots in front of him while Sonic did the same behind him. They were pressed up against each other as the hunks of metal began to close in, Tails winced when his shoulders got pricked on Sonic's quills that had risen along with his agitation with the situation they had found themselves in. Eggman hovered over them and cackled victoriously making both mobians scowl at his obnoxiously loud laugh.  
  
"I finally got you this time, Sonic!" He shouted and waited for Sonic's normal cocky reply but when his teasing was met with silence he looked down at the hedgehog who was only glaring up at him in annoyance. "Got nothing to say, rat? I guess my glory has finally made you speechless!" He boasted loudly. Sonic's scowl deepened and he pulled Tails close to him before flinging his arm over the young kit's eyes and promptly giving Eggman the bird. The human sputtered angrily before pressing several buttons calling more robots that began to close in on them as well. Tails struggled lightly confused by the other's action but didn't get to question it before Sonic quickly let go of him. Tails shot him a confused look but his confusion quickly faded when he saw Sonic wearing a large grin. Tails quickly glanced down to Sonic's hands waiting for him to tell him what he had planned.  
  
'Let's do it just like we practiced,' He quickly signed and Tails felt his stomach drop. What if he messed it up? They had only managed to just perfect it and what if even that was a fluke or dumb luck? Tails gulped and pushed his doubts to the back of his mind and nodded before grabbing Sonic's hand. Sonic's smile grew and he nodded back to the younger male. He then swung as hard as he could before throwing Tails up into the air, the fox made quick work of his appendages and hovered in the air while Sonic revved up in place. The blue hedgehog then ran up one of the larger badniks and kicked off of its exterior and shot upwards towards Tails. The younger of the two held his hand out just in time to catch Sonic before he soared past him, using the momentum from the other Tails spun in circles holding tightly onto Sonic's hands. They continued to spin before Tails let go sending Sonic speeding downward straight into the first row of badniks.  
  
Tails cheered loudly at their success before getting ready to do it again as Sonic pushed off another robot. Before long the had managed to take out all of the robots in the vicinity, Tails panted but waved off Sonic's worried gaze when he looked at him.  
  
"Let's do it one last time!" He shouted while Sonic took care of the last stragglers. Eggman cursed colorfully as his face became red with anger. Sonic raised his hand giving his partner a thumbs up before zooming off into the distance only to come racing back and launching himself into the air by kicking off of a large piece of metal. Tails held out both hands and grabbed the hedgehog's own before spinning as fast as his body could allow when he let go finally he shot Sonic straight in Eggman's hovercraft. The impact of Sonic's body sent the human's ship shooting through the sky far away from them, just as Sonic hit it a red emerald was spat out from the ship's cockpit and landed on the ground next to Tails' feet as the young male landed.  
  
Sonic turned and laughed silently when he saw Tails sawying and holding his head. He held him still by his shoulders and Tails smiled up at him gratefully. Sonic let go when he was sure Tails wasn't going fall over at any given moment.  
  
'You alright, buddy?' Sonic asked. Tails raised his hands to sign back but let them fall at his sides as they were a bit sore.  
  
"I'm fine, just a bit sore and a little dizzy." Tails answered with a bright smile. Sonic nodded before bending over and picking up the red emerald while Tails held out the white one he had picked up. "Well, this makes four! Only two more to go!" Tails cheered and Sonic smiled widely nodding. The two then conversed silently as they made their way back to the Tornado.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope I did good on the fighting scene, I think I did better than I normally would have and I hope you guys liked it too.
> 
> I don't know when I'm going to update again bit I will try.
> 
> If you liked this please leave a comment, feedback is greatly appreciated!


	10. In The Back Of My Mind

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So as of this moment, I'm bored and have nothing better to do than post another chapter. I have at least four chapters left to post until you will sadly have to wait until I can write more.
> 
> Either way I hope you enjoy this chapter!

_"Maria, what's that?" A five-month-old Silver asked pointing out the large observatory window, Sonic stood next to him pressing his face against the glass. Maria walked towards them with Shadow in tow, the young girl looked out the window to see what Silver was pointing at. The object in question was the planet the Ark was orbiting around, the place Maria used to call home. It was still her home but anywhere would be home as long as she had her little brothers there with her._

_"That's Earth," She answered. Silver nodded and continued to stare out the window, Sonic pulled away from the glass and looked at Maria with stars in his eyes._

_"It's so big...." He said in awe causing the female to chuckle at his behavior. "Imagine being able to run down there! Such a big place, I would never run out of places to run to!" He exclaimed jumping up and down as he turned to the window again. Shadow scoffed but Maria could tell he was amused just as much as she was._

_"Yes, it's a very big place." Maria sighed and wistfully looked out the window._

_"Do you think one day we'll be able to go down there?" Silver asked._

_"I'd like to think so," Maria answered quietly looking out the window and missing the glanced the three brothers shared as the noticed Maria's change in attitude._

_"Why can't we go now?" Sonic asked quietly. Maria frowned and turned to face the boys. She saw how they were all looking up at her and she smiled sadly but they all could see how it didn't reach her eyes._

_"Because I'm sick." She answered simply. "I can't go down there because my sickness might get worse," She closed her eyes and took a deep breath trying to hold back her tears._

_"Do you have friends down there?" Silver spoke up wanting to know why the topic of going to Earth made her so sad._

_"My family and friends are all down there," She answered solemnly. "I miss them a lot..." Sonic frowned and approached the sad blond and hugged her legs catching her off guard. When Sonic let go, Maria bent down on her knees so she could look at him eye to eye. Sonic was staring at her with such sadness it made her heart throb she looked to Silver and Shadow and noticed that they had been affected by her sudden wave of sadness. "But I'm happy up here too because I have you guys, I wouldn't want to go back to Earth if you guys couldn't come too." She tried to cheer them up, Silver seemed to light up a bit at her words and Shadow looked away bashfully but Sonic continued to stare at her his green eyes piercing through her excuse._

_"It's okay if it makes you sad Maria," Sonic said softly grabbing her hand. "I would be sad if I couldn't be with you guys anymore, so it's understandable if you're sad about not seeing your family."_

_"Sonic..." Maria began but Sonic was determined to make her understand._

_"I want you to smile but I don't want it to be because you don't want us to see you sad. If you're sad then be sad, if you're happy then be happy. Don't fake it for us." Maria's lower lip quivered and her eyes began to fill with tears. Silver jumped forward and hugged her as she began to cry causing a wet laugh to escape the human. Shadow looked on with worry before Sonic grabbed his arms and pulled him along s he inserted himself and his brother into the sudden hug._

_"Besides you won't have to be sad for long because we're gonna cure you soon!" Silver supplied as Maria continued to cry while holding all three of them close, at Silver's words her hold on them tighten._

_"Yeah! And then we can go to Earth together!' Sonic cried. Maria let out another small laugh as tears still spilled over her cheeks._

_"Okay..." She whispered._

* * *

Sonic sat on top of his and Tails' shared house, it had been another sleepless night for him. His dreams had been filed with scared shouting, gunshots, and soldiers. The sun was beginning to rise but Sonic couldn't bring himself to enjoy the sight, not when his family wasn't here to see it with him. Now and then when he let himself think back on his days on the Ark he began to feel guilty. Guilty that he was able to enjoy everything they had promised to do together at the expense of their lives. He didn't think it was fair for him to be able to live happily and free (except for having to fight Egghead now and then) while they weren't around to experience it with him.

The sun's first rays began to shine on his still form. He never wanted it to be this way, he never wanted to have to live without them. He had thought being stuck in his stabilizer alone forever was bad but this was so much worse. This sort of thought process didn't happen all the time, no it happened when he saw a flower that Maria had told him about or when he saw a book he just knew Shadow would love or when he looked at Tails and saw the same child-like wonder that he used to see in Silver's eyes.

Sonic pressed the heels of his palms into his eyes and inhaled sharply. He missed them so damn much! Every day that past and he still couldn't find his brothers he lost a bit of hope. Pretty soon he knew he would have to just accept that they were gone along with Maria and they weren't coming back.

A choked sob escaped him when the weight of the thought hit him. They weren't coming back and there was nothing he could do about that. He, Sonic the Hedgehog, who had beaten several formidable enemies and even beaten a god for crying out loud, couldn't even save his own damn family! The blue mobian curled into himself and continued to cry quietly wishing with all his heart that he could see them one last time. Despite the sun's glowing warmth against his fur Sonic had never felt colder.

A sunrise.

To most people, it represented new beginnings, a chance to make the upcoming day what they wanted it to be.

Unfortunately, Sonic wasn't most people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Our blue boy is depressed and you have no one to blame but me.
> 
> I hope this story is interesting and I hope you all are enjoying this as much as I am.
> 
> Also, this story has recently gotten past 700 hits!! I can't believe this, and I have you guys to thank for that. 
> 
> I would also like to take this moment to thank one of my really good friends, you know who you are! This story wouldn't be what it is without your help and constant support, I don't know what I'd do without you! :)
> 
> Please pardon any mistakes I may have overlooked, I'm too lazy to reread this for the tenth time lol. And let me know what your thoughts on this are in the comments, feedback is greatly appreciated!
> 
> Please stay safe and healthy! :)


	11. All Around Me Are Familiar Faces

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I might have found a way to continue writing more chapters so to celebrate I'm posting another chapter!

Sonic hated G.U.N.

He had every reason to after what they had taken from him. He avoided them every chance he got, he refused to work with them or anything they stood for. Tails never knew why and he didn't bother to ask as he thought it was just something Sonic didn't want to discuss like a lot of other things he was curious about. What he didn't expect was for Sonic to be afraid when G.U.N agents began hunting him down, he knew the blue hero had his limits this just wasn't one he had expected. Sonic had all but demanded that Tails stay away from him until this blew over, Tails refused, however, saying that they were family and should stick together. 

Tails offered to figure out just why G.U.N had taken a sudden interest in him despite all he had done for the world over the years. What he found out shocked him. Sonic was to be arrested for trying and succeeding to attack G.U.N. bases, Tails for one did not believe any of that one bit. Sure his older brother hated the government but not to the extent of outright attacking them out of spite. Tails wouldn't believe Sonic would do such a thing unless he had proof and the proof he had found was down right ridiculous. On the security footage, it clearly showed a hedgehog Mobian but it was _not_ Sonic. They might have looked similar but how someone could get the colors blue and black mixed up was beyond the young kit, maybe the humans were color blind.

"Sonic! I figure out why they're after you, they've confused you for someone else!" Tails shouted rushing towards where Sonic was trying to get some shut-eye under a palm tree. The had managed to lose the agents after them when Sonic decided his speed was the only thing going to get them far enough from them. He trusted Tails to keep up with him but his fear and desperation kicked in and he had grabbed the kit and taken off leaving a sonic boom in his wake. Sonic immediately sat up to attention looking at Tails with expectant eyes. Tails pulled out his Miles Electric and opened the files he had saved with the security footage and shoved into Sonic's face. The blue blur flinched but took the device into his hands and watched with rapt attention as the clips played.

Off to the side, an explosion went off, and then a figure could be seen taking out several of the security bots around the perimeter but stopped in front of the camera seeming to not take notice of it. The figure looked around before facing the camera fully, Sonic's eyes widened and his breath hitched. Tails looked to his best friend in worry but opting not to say anything as Sonic was too focused on the screen to hear him anyway.

The figure was a hedgehog, Sonic had managed to figure out that much easily. They looked to be about Sonic's height but what struck Sonic was the color and placement of the other's quills as they looked to be far too familiar for comfort. Black quills with red streaks on them and the arms and legs, familiar jet shoes adorned their feet along with the same rings around the cuffs of their gloves that clung to their wrists. His throat began to close up and it was getting hard to breathe, Sonic lost his grip on the Miles Electric and brought his hands to cover his mouth as he stared at the video clip that had paused on the exact moment the figure moved to destroy the camera.

Blazing red eyes stared into shaken green ones.

It was him, there was no doubt about it. But how? Where had he been all these years? 

"Sonic...?" Tails called softly but Sonic didn't respond only continuing to stare at the device.

"It's him..." Sonic whispered and tears filled his eyes. Tails frowned and his ears bent back as his worry began to grow, he picked up his device and looked at the figure then back to Sonic.

"Do you know him, Sonic?" The young fox whispered sitting down beside the other. Sonic nodded and squeezed his eyes shut to prevent any tears from falling, it didn't work as a few slipped down his peach muzzle.

"I-" Sonic sucked in a deep breath. "I thought... h-he was _dead_." Sonic finally turned to his little brother with wide eyes. "Tails... I thought he was dead..." Sonic laughed but it sounded crazed and strained. "All these years of searching and I couldn't even find him, I didn't look hard enough and he probably thinks me and Silver are dead! Oh, Chaos! What if he's attacking G.U.N because he thinks they killed us- what if, what if-"

"Sonic, calm down! You're scaring me!" Tails cried cutting off the older male's rambling. Sonic stopped and looked to Tails before shaking his head and turning to the small computer again. Sonic sighed and pressed the heels of his palms into his eyes when he let his arms fall back down he looked down at his hands.

"I'm sorry..." He mumbled. Tails smiled and shook his head.

"It's fine, but I need to know..." Tails hesitated when he saw Sonic tense but he couldn't let this slide anymore, Sonic was hiding something, and, Tails needed to know what it was because whatever he was hiding was hurting him. "I need to know who that person is, G.U.N thinks it's you that's why they keep coming after you," Sonic laughed quietly but it was a hollow sound.

"Those humans must be blind to think me and Shadow look alike, he would be pissed to hear that," Sonic said quietly. Shadow... So Tails had a name for the new mobian, well that was a start.

"Was he..." Tails paused trying to figure out how to phrase his question. "Were you guys close?" He decided on asking. Sonic looked back at the Miles Electric and nodded solemnly. "Sonic... What happened...?" Sonic's closed his eyes tightly and took a deep breath through his nose.

"I..." Sonic shook his head. "I'm sorry buddy... I just-" He sighed. "I can't say right now... It's just hard..." Tails nodded in understanding. "I'll tell you... just not right now, okay?" He asked and looked to Tails with a small smile. Tails nodded again.

"Can you tell me who this guy is at least, how do you know him?" Sonic looked away from his best friend and back to the screen.

"He was something like a brother to me, we were made together with... Someone else..." No one had ever outwardly said it but the three biohogs saw each other as brothers. Tails nodded but frowned as he was now more confused than he was earlier. Sonic was made? What did that mean? Tails pushed his questions to the back of his brain and leaned closer to Sonic looking the screen as well.

"I'm sure we can find him and figure out what's going on," Tails offered quietly. Sonic felt his stomach drop at the thought of seeing Shadow again, he was happy the other was alive sure, but what if he was angry that Sonic had failed him and Silver? What if he hated him for not finding him sooner? So many what ifs swarmed his thoughts and he didn't notice his breathing begin to pick up at an alarming rate until Tails placed a hand on Sonic's shoulder, he snapped his gaze over to the kit who smiled reassuringly. Tails never thought he'd be on this end during this type of situations as normally Sonic was the one to comfort him but he reminded himself that Sonic had a breaking point just as much as he and all their other friends did.

"I'm sure he'll be happy to see you again," Sonic nodded slowly as a small smile spread along his face.

* * *

Shadow stared up at the map on the screen, all he had to do was get all the Chaos Emeralds for the Doctor, and then he could focus on finding his brothers. Then if he was able to, he would give G.U.N. a piece of his mind. He tsked and pulled out the green emerald that the Doctor had given him and felt a burst of nostalgia when he looked into its bright glow as it was the same emerald he had come in contact with when Gerald had given it to him to unlock his powers. He closed his eyes and briefly saw three figures one bent over hurling out his lunch another brought him down from the ceiling the tallest figure was kneeling by the sick one and worrying over him. Shadow felt the emptiness in his chest grow at the thought of his loved ones, he growled before clutching the jewel again.

He would find them if it was the last thing he'd do. He closed his eyes before reopening them a second later and muttered two words.

"Chaos Control."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this, as always comments are welcome and appreciated!
> 
> Also HAPPY PRIDE MONTH TO ALL!! You are all valid and loved greatly and I hope you all have a lovely month!
> 
> Please pardon any mistakes I may have overlooked as I tried my best to edit this.
> 
> Thank you again for reading and have a great day/night! 😊😊❤❤❤


	12. When Can I See You Again?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So first things first... I hit 1k hits!?!? Like???? How??? I'm so happy and as a thank you gift to all of you that made this possible I'm posting another chapter!!
> 
> Seriously though, thank you so much. I did not think this would get this far as some of the other works I wrote for this fandom were pretty much trash *cough, cough* Memory Lane...! So this was a big surprise to me and it would not be possible if is wasn't for all of you wonderful readers.
> 
> Your guys comments and kudos push me to want to to more and to continue this to the best of my ability, I can't thank you enough!
> 
> With that said, enough of the mushy crap! Enjoy the next chapter of Three Times The Love!! I really think you'll like this one... 😋

Shadow had found out that a majority of the emeralds were with two of the Doctors 'enemies' as he had called them. To be frank, Shadow didn't care who they were only that they had what he needed and if not, he would get it from them through force if necessary. 

The black and red hybrid was currently skating through a green valley near the shoreline, he could sense the emeralds nearby but that wasn't all he felt. No, there was something else. It was a presence that was as strong as the emerald if not more so, there were only two people he knew to have that kind of energy signature. He shook his head. No, he wouldn't bother getting his hopes up only to be let down. They were gone and so was Maria, he needed to understand that. But still... What if?

He skidded to a halt when he felt a flux in the energy and knew without a doubt that he was close to whoever had the emeralds. He looked left and right trying to get a clear direction luckily he didn't have to as a loud shout rang out from a little ways ahead. He sprinted to the voices gritting his teeth

* * *

"Ack! A-Amy..!" Sonic squeaked out as the female hedgehog glomped him from behind, he looked to Tails for help but the kit only smiled cheekily before turning back to his Miles Electric. They had been looking for another Chaos Emerald that had strangely been moving around drastically as of late, Tails didn't need his friend to tell him that he suspected it to be this Shadow he had mentioned earlier.

They had not expected Amy to come out from nowhere, but that was what she did best. Tails giggled to himself and Sonic shot him a betrayed glare.

"Amy, wh-what are you doing here?" He wheezed trying to escape her iron grip.

"Looking for you silly!" She stated as if it should have been obvious when in fact it was.

"Well, I'd love to hang out with you but I'm kinda busy right now," Sonic said, managing to get the girl off of him. She pouted as he gently pushed her out of his personal space.

"You're always busy!" She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. Sonic glanced at Tails who was still fiddling with his handheld device

"This is important," Sonic began to explain waving his hands in front of him.

"I already know about G.U.N. wanting to arrest you, that's why I came to find you! I just knew you wouldn't do something like attacking them for no reason," Amy said and hugged his arm. 

"Well, you're right about it not being me." Sonic groaned and pushed her away from him causing her to whine quietly. "We're trying to find the person they're mistaking me for," He gestured to Tails.

"Oh?" Amy said peering over Tails' shoulder. "Do you know who he is?" She asked looking to the blue mobian for answers, Sonic swallowed thickly.

"Kinda..." He answered.

"Sonic, I think the next emerald is nearby!" Tails said saving Sonic from having to explain what his answer meant. He mentally breathed a sigh of relief before peering over Tails' shoulder as well. The blinking dot _was_ close. Sonic's breath hitched as a wave of someone else's chaos energy enveloped his senses, Tails, and Amy looked to him in confusion and worry and might have called out to him but he couldn't hear them past the ringing in his ears. Behind them, a twig snapped and his friends stood up ready to fight while Sonic stood still facing away from the possible threat. He heard Tails gasp and whispered his name but he couldn't bring it in himself to move. The energy was so close now it was overriding all his instincts and other senses. He gulped and willed his body to move, he slowly began to turn around his eyes on the ground.

Sonic was now turned fully toward the newcomer, he slowly raised his gaze. His green eyes were watering but he couldn't bring himself to care despite Amy being present. There before him, was his elder brother whom he had believed to have lost all those years ago, Shadow stood in a similar state to the blue hero with his crimson eyes wide with shock and his body tense with disbelief. Amy looked back and forth between the two in great confusion as while Tails watched on with caution.

Sonic took a small step forward in silence, Shadow stayed put not sure what he should do at this point. It was obvious that this was, in fact, Sonic but what was he supposed to do now that he had found him? All three mobians watched with anticipation as the speedster took on a surprisingly slow pace to get to the other. 

As Sonic approached him Shadow was reminded of the moment Sonic had took his first steps towards him and Silver, he had wobbled on his feet and held his arms in front of him in fear of falling forward. Shadow noticed that Sonic held the same longing in his eyes as he had that day.

Once standing in front of Shadow, Sonic raised his eyes fully to look into the other's letting a few stray tears fall slowly. Shadow opened his mouth to speak but was cut off when Sonic promptly threw himself at the other hybrid sending both artificial mobians to the ground. Shadow, too stunned to keep them steady ending up taking the brunt of the fall but at the moment he couldn't bring himself to care. Sonic was clinging onto him with his arms wrapped around his neck and face buried in his shoulder, Shadow then slowly recuperated the hug.

As soon as Sonic felt Shadow wrap his arms around him it felt like a dam had broken loose and almost instantly tears that had started to trickle from his eyes began to pour like a rainstorm. Sonic sobbed loud and ugly uncaring if his friends were to see him, at the moment what they thought didn't matter, all that mattered to him was that Shadow was alive. He was _alive_! He couldn't believe it, all those years he had spent wondering what happened to him and Silver and he had been alive this whole time!

"I th- I thought, y-you were dead...!" He sobbed causing all three mobians to flinch at his words. "Cause you-you were g-gone and I l-looked for you guys forever- but I-" Sonic couldn't even finish his sentence opting to hold onto his brother instead. He had been holding in years' worth of guilt and pain without any way of letting it out.

Tails watched with wide eyes at the scene displayed in front of him. He should have expected this from how Sonic was acting earlier but it was surprising nonetheless. What shocked him was that all these years, every time Sonic went out on one of his 'runs' he was doing it for fun, he was scouring the earth for the people he had lost a long time ago. The vulpine glanced at his female friend and noticed her staring as well but with more confusion than surprise, hopefully, Sonic would explain to them just what was going on.

After what felt like hours but turned out to only be a few minutes Sonic managed to cry himself dry and leaned back wiping his eyes. Shadow watched him quietly and waited for the other to put himself back together. Sonic looked at Shadow with tearful eyes but deep in his emerald colored orbs was a fire that had been relit just by seeing his brother again.

"Where have you've been?" Sonic asked quietly and Shadow looked away for a moment.

"G.U.N. had found me," He eventually said and Sonic growled lowly causing Shadow to smile a bit. "They had me kept away in a protected room where my pod was hidden," Sonic scowled deeply and crossed his arms.

"I should have thought of that a long time ago..." He grumbled and wiped at his nose. Shadow watched the other for a moment before frowning.

"Sonic, where have _you_ been?" He asked catching the other off guard.

"I... uh... Well, a friend of mine found me a couple of years ago and let me out," Sonic said and gestured to the fox behind him, Shadow then finally took notice of the other mobians and immediately threw his guard up. He grabbed Sonic's arm and pulled him up before standing in front of him. Amy quickly summoned her hammer at his sudden hostile actions as Tails stood defensively ready to fight for his friend if need be.

"Shadow, wait!" Sonic tried to get the other's attention.

"They're the Doctor's enemies, aren't they? And they're using you to find the emeralds," Shadow stated glaring them both down.

"What? No, Shadow listen to me-"

"Who are you to assume something like that?" Amy spat wielding her hammer in front of her, eyes blazing.

"Guys, wait."

"I don't trust you," Shadow growled causing Amy's glare to strengthen.

"I could say the same to you, pal." She sneered.

"You won't be using him for your own gain any longer," Shadow stated and used his free hand to pull out the green emerald in his possession, Sonic's eyes widened and he began to try and loosen Shadow's hold on his arm. He knew Shadow meant well and had no reason to trust anybody but him at the moment but he really needed to get this under control.

"Shadow, please-"

"Chaos Control!" He shouted over Sonic's pleas, soon white filled everyone's vision, and in a flash, both hedgehogs were gone.

"What did he just do?!" Amy shouted turning to Tails who was just as shocked as she was. Tails ran to the spot his elder brother was mere seconds ago but saw that not even a single trace of them had been left.

"I don't know, but he said something about Eggman! And Sonic was holding onto all the Chaos Emeralds we found!" Tails cried pulling on his ears. They needed to find out where Shadow had taken Sonic, and _fast_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know, another cliffhanger. I give you permission to hate me.
> 
> So two of our bois have been reunited, hurray!! But of course Shadow is over protective and ruined the moment, but I guess he has every right to be.
> 
> So, how did y'all like that chapter? Let me know in the comments, feedback is greatly appreciated!
> 
> Also once again I would like wish everyone and very happy Pride Month!! 
> 
> 'Till next time!
> 
> ~B_Rabbit14 ❤❤❤❤❤❤


	13. Chaos And Confusion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I can explain.
> 
> So some stuff happened and I wasn't able to get online but I'm back now. Sadly however I will most likely not be able to post anymore chapters for a bit as the only way for me to write isn't really working out. This chapter right here is the last one I had written before I returned my computer so I hope you enjoy it.

Sonic tore his arm from Shadow's grip and turned to fix him with a glare.

"What the heck was that for?" He cried. Shadow merely crossed his arms and turned away. Sonic zipped around his brother so he could see his face.

"They were using you," He started making Sonic groaned loudly and run his hands down the sides of his face. He knew Shadow could be headstrong but this was ridiculous!

"No, they weren't!" Sonic defended. "They were my friends and were _helping_ me," Sonic said making wild gestures with his hands and tapping his foot rapidly.

"Then why did they need the chaos emeralds?" Shadow inquired with a raised brow.

"Because we needed to get them before Eggman does something with them," Sonic answered crossing his arms and scowling at the other in annoyance. Shadow's hard stare faltered and his confusion showed only for a split second before it was shoved under his mask of indifference.

"Who's this 'Eggman'?"

"His real name is Ivo Robotnik," He noticed how Shadow flinched at the last name and he waved his hands in front of him. "I know what you're thinking but trust me on this Shadow he isn't what you're thinking he is. He's tried to destroy Earth and hurt my friends a lot over the years," Sonic hesitated before pressing on. "He's nothing like the Doc," Both of them knew who he was referring to. A silence settled over them for a moment and Sonic took this time to look around a just where Shadow had taken him. His green eyes widened in shock and he whipped his head back to face Shadow with an unbelieving gaze. "Are we..." He couldn't bring himself to say it.

"Yes, I took us to the Ark," Shadow finished for him, his hard eyes softened when he saw how Sonic looked around with misty eyes. Shadow had teleported them into the observatory room where they used to stargaze with Silver and... Maria. Sonic turned back to Shadow after wiping his eye harshly.

"Shadow, you have to take me back," He demanded softly taking Shadow by surprise.

"Why?" He asked just as softly. "You'll be safe here and the Doctor will-"

"Shadow I can't stay here, the Eggman is planning something bad. I don't know what he told you but he's not the good guy, Shadow." Sonic explained calmly.

"How do you that? He told me-"

"Whatever he told you was a lie, he's done it before and I wouldn't be surprised if he did it again. Please, Shadow, just trust me on this," Sonic pleaded with his hands clasped together in front of his face. Shadow looked away from him, the Doctor had told him all he was planning was for the good of the planet and that the real villains were Sonic's supposed friends. But he knew Sonic would lie about something like this, heck he was a terrible liar, to begin with. So when he looked back and saw how deadly serious his brother was he couldn't help but be a bit surprised.

"What is he plotting then?" Shadow asked. Sonic didn't lose his seriousness because he could tell just what Shadow had decided on yet.

"He wants to take over the planet, he's been trying for years but I've always been there to stop him. That's why he made you attack G.U.N's bases so they would think it was me and put me behind bars, then he'd be free to do whatever he pleases with the world with me out of the way." Sonic summarized quickly and looked around the room as he started to get antsy, he hadn't been here and forever so it was a bit jarring to suddenly be pulled back here.

"Wait, what do you mean he's been trying to _stop_ you? And why is he bringing _G.U.N._ into this?" Shadow growled and Sonic could help but smile as his protectiveness had managed to stick with him along with his egotistic brooding.

"Nothing much really, he has tried to kill me once or twice," He hated having to manipulate Shadow like this but he was not going to stand for Eggman tricking him of all people, and besides he wasn't technically lying or anything. He'd had so pretty close calls over the years.

"He, _what_?!" Shadow snapped his eyes wild. Sonic was quick to calm him down.

"It's fine Shadow, he's never been able to catch me not once." He shrugged. Shadow took a deep breath to calm himself and place his mask back in place, Sonic frowned when he noticed this but opted not to say anything yet.

"How did you manage to figure all of that out on your own?" Shadow inquired and anyone who didn't know him like Sonic had wouldn't have been able to hear the teasing lilt in his voice.

"Hey, I may be a bit slow to pick on things sometimes but I am in no way stupid!" He defended with a smirk. His eye widened as he remembered something. "What how many emeralds do you have?" Shadow then pulled out the one the doctor had given him so he could search for the others.

"Just this one," He answers, and Sonic moves to grabbed it but Shadow pulls it away. Sonic pouts at him before reaching into his quills and pulling out four of the emeralds and smirking at Shadow baffled expression.

"Looks like I have more," He stuck his tongue out playfully and earned a soft shove.

"And you just happened to bring them right to me, you blue rat!" A voice boomed from all around them. Sonic immediately recognized the voice as Eggman's and took on a defensive stance looking around.

"Alright, Eggy!" Sonic called out trying to mask his current rage as he remembered this man had tried to use his brother against him and the rest of the planet. "The jig is up, we got the emerald and you can just surrender the last of them!"

"I have something else in mind, Sonic," The human booms through the speakers. "You can hand over the emeralds to me and die?" Sonic felt Shadow tense behind him and the word 'die' and held out a hand to calm him down.

"I don't think I like the sound of that," Sonic said pushing the emerald behind his back and into Shadow's hand making it seem like he was stuffing the back into his quills. Shadow took them silently and hid them away as well.

"Well isn't that too bad, I don't remember asking!" A loud beeping noise rang out around the room just as a glass wall split Shadow and Sonic apart. Sonic gasped and jumped back only to come in contact with another wall, he whirled around and noticed the glass was surrounding him. Sonic frantically looked up and noticed a ceiling had come down atop the glass cube just as the floor below him rose. His thoughts became muddled as panic set in, he wasn't in the present any more he was slammed back into the past watching as Maria moved to pull the lever.

"NO!" Sonic screamed and threw himself at the glass, Shadow jumped back in shock as Sonic lashed out. His green eyes were glazed over with fear and unseeing to everything around him. Shadow had a strong suspicion he knew what was wrong with the other and lept into action. Just before he could come in contact with the glass the pod that had forcefully encased Sonic shot through the floor and out into space taking Sonic with it. Shadow stared at the space the pod had been with wide eyes and clenched the green chaos emerald in his hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that happened... XD
> 
> I'm not really happy with how this one ended so I may or may not fix it when I get the chance either way I hope you guys enjoyed! 
> 
> Don't forget to leave a comment, feed back is greatly appreciated! 
> 
> See y'all next chapter! 😝


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